What I Did for Love
by AmberMint8
Summary: Really what were the odds that she could find someone to love on a reality show? Rachel could only hope this idea wouldn't end all that bad...
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: Do not own any of the characters from Glee, this is simply for fun! **

"Please tell me that you're joking right now!" Rachel Berry exclaimed to her best friend Santana Lopez. It had just been another day in their New York apartment that the two girls shared together when the Latina had dropped the news upon the little brunette.

"It's not like it was just my idea," Santana replied. "We all know that it's been forever since you've dated anyone, and we decided that this would be just one way to get you back in the game."

"We?" Rachel questioned, narrowing her eyes. "Let me guess, the 'we' being you, Brittany, Blaine, Quinn, and Noah, right?"

"Well yeah…," She answered trailing off and turning back to the t.v. show they had been previously been watching. "Look, Rachel, it's not like we're telling you to go jump off a cliff, or cut off your arm, or even that Broadway is going to end up-."

"Stop right there and don't even finish that sentence if you are going to go on and try to convince me to even consider going along with a ridiculous and idiotic plan that you've come up with." Rachel interrupted angrily.

"Chill out Rach. Point is that you are just going to be on some reality show that allows to meet a bunch of guys who are also looking for a relationship." Santana said, trying to get Rachel to go along with the idea.

Rachel couldn't lie to herself and say that she was fine being single for the last however many years now because honestly it had kind of sucked. But the truth was that she just didn't see how a t.v. show could help. Especially when it was reality t.v. Everyone on those shows were usually just attention whores who liked to play up drama to the cameras. So why would this be any different?

"Why is this so important to you?" Rachel asked frustrated and taking a deep breath in order to calm down. "You know that I'm busy anyway with the revival of Wicked and that this is probably the biggest opportunity I'll ever get." Santana rolled her eyes and sighed knowing that her friend was trying to get out of it.

"Nice try Berry, but you know that I know that while you're an extremely talented actress, you couldn't lie to save your sweet ass."

"That's only cause you've known me for the last fifteen years." Rachel mumbled dejectedly realizing her attempt was useless as she slumped back onto the lounge chair even further as if that would swallow her whole so she wouldn't have to face the situation.

"Exactly!" Santana grinned. "Plus you've only told me a billion times already that your performance as Elphaba on the stage will not be one to forget. So I know for a fact that the show's run is almost over."

"But really," Rachel said exasperated, "a t.v. show? You couldn't just let me do this the natural way? You know it'll never work out anyway right?"

"Well we'll see about that. I mean, who knows right? Anything could happen. It all depends on if you're willing to take a chance Rach." The Latina stated shrugging, trying to make it seem like she was being nonchalant when in fact she was dying for her petite friend to go out on a limb just this once.

Rachel sighed knowing that there was no way she would be able to get out of the show with Santana involved. The two girls had become best friends when they were eight years old and Rachel had learned over the years that it was better not to question her friend's crazy antics.

There is no way that any of this could ever work out, Rachel thought. It was all some big hoax anyway that people actually fell "in love" on a show. But she knew deep down Santana was only interested in helping her out and that she had a point. It had been a while now…

And that was that.

Rachel Berry was back in the game.

"What the hell man?!" Finn shouted coming in from the kitchen, phone in hand, face his step-brother. "Kurt, can you tell me why I just got a call from some reality t.v. show saying that they were looking forward to meeting Finn Hudson in Los Angeles in two weeks?"

"Oh boy…" Kurt sighed, trying to think of a way to explain what he had done to his furious brother.

"A-and not only that but they said to be ready for an interview to see if I'd be a good contestant to be in a relationship with some girl?" Finn finished with confusion.

It had just been an average day in the apartment when the phone had started to ring. Finn had just accepted the call when immediately after a recorded message had started to play. Apparently he was signed up to be on a show where he got to date a girl, but would have to compete alongside several other men too. To say Finn was shocked was an understatement considering he didn't even remember entering his name, but he soon realized there was only one other person who could have done it.

"Okay look, Finn, I'm sorry I didn't tell you earlier but honestly I didn't even think they'd respond back." Kurt started, immediately going on the defense. "Plus I think it's about time you got back into dating again. I know your last relationship didn't go so well, but it's time to move on."

"But Kurt really? A t.v. show? And I'm competing with other guys…. How is this going to do any good?" Finn asked desperately trying to get the point across to his brother. This was probably the worst idea he had ever had, and that was saying something since he had once dressed up like Lady Gaga sophomore year of school. What possessed Kurt to do that, Finn would never know.

"I know it's not your average sort of dating-," Kurt began.

"Of course it's not!" Finn interjected.

"But who knows where it could lead to! I mean really what's the harm? At best, maybe you turn it into a relationship, and at worst, well you just get to talk to her at least a few times. But even that's an improvement in your dating life already! Seriously when was the last time you even asked out a girl Finn?"

"It's been awhile," he admitted dejectedly. It's not as if he'd meant to put off the dating part of his life, but he just didn't see the reason why it mattered so much after he had gotten his heart broken. However, after listening to Kurt's little plead for him to do the show Finn knew he couldn't say no. It'd be the absolute weirdest way to date a person, but he knew that he might as well take a chance.

Like Kurt said, Finn thought, who knew where it could lead to.

It was time for Finn Hudson to get back in the game.

Reviews are welcome!

A/N: So this idea came from the show _The Bachelorette_ (which I don't own) and the title of the story is from _A Chorus Line_ (which I don't own either). I don't know how well this will turn out considering it's my first story but here goes nothing!


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: Do not own any of the characters from Glee, this is simply for fun! **

The next few weeks were the longest of Rachel's life. There were multiple meetings for the show with the producers and the crew to finalize details to make sure everything was perfect. However there were little rules that did not sit well with her, but she knew it was part of the deal.

"_So Rachel we'd like to go over a few minor rules we have on this show if that's okay with you?" Emma Pillsbury stated as she sat down across from her behind a wooden desk in the spacious office. Emma was one of the show's producers and was very meticulous about every little detail that went into the process. _

"_Sure. That's okay with me." Rachel answered. Truthfully she had a feeling that these rules would be a problem but she tried to keep an open mind like Santana had suggested._

"_Okay, well, obviously this is a reality show so cameras will be on almost 24/7. That's what makes the show. We'll give you your private moments but they'll be quite short." Emma said seriously. "Secondly, you are not allowed to state your feelings towards anyone directly. You can hint around but it would ruin the ending if you stated it outright." _

_Okay, Rachel thought, those rules aren't that bad. I can deal with that._

"_Also in order to keep the show even more interesting you are encouraged by the other producers and I to keep around the more 'peculiar' men, at least in the first few weeks."_

_That was a bit annoying. Rachel knew the show thrived on silly little gimmicks but she didn't see the purpose of keeping someone around if there was nothing there. However she knew if that was the worst she could live. _

"_Lastly, if it comes to it where you feel nothing in the end for any of the men you have to at least pick one and put up the façade that you are in love." Emma said bluntly as Rachel's mind blanked. "As you know from the history of the show the couples usually break up, but it serves for good press for the show and keeps viewers tuned in. It can be all an act if you want but make sure it lasts at least for a little while. You understand?"_

_Rachel's mind raced as she went over the last rule in her head. Faking being in love? Sure, she was an actress but betraying her emotions didn't seem right. Rachel nodded her head slowly as she came to terms with what had been said but knowing deep down if it came to it she wouldn't be able to follow through. She could only hope for the best._

A knock on the door broke her out of her stupor and Rachel looked up from her laptop just in time to see her friends walk through the door with all kinds of takeout food in hand. They knew she was nervous and since this was the night before she would be meeting these men, who all supposedly wanted to date her, her friends decided to hang out.

"Berry! What's up my Jew?" Noah greeted as he walked over to her counter and set the bags of food down. Rachel couldn't help but smile at the greeting. It had been that way ever since she had met Noah two years ago when Quinn had hooked up with him. He had introduced himself back then as Puck but Rachel couldn't bring herself to call him that because it sounded ridiculous.

"Hey Rachel," Quinn and Blaine said keeping it simple when greeting their long time friend. Quinn and Blaine had gone to college with Rachel and had been inseparable ever since freshman year when they had all joined the same drama club in hopes of finding new people to hang out with.

Last to stroll in was Brittany, Santana's girlfriend, carrying a cat carrier in one hand and a video camera in the other. It was definitely odd behavior but since she had been around for the last year and a half Rachel was use to it. She was happy Santana had found someone to love.

"So Rachel, since it's your last day here Lord Tubbington wanted to come see you before you left. He's so sad that the special brownies you make him won't be around for the next month or so, but I'm glad. He really needs to start working on getting off his weight in time for swimsuit season. It's either that or liposuction, but you know how he hates needles. No girl wants to go for a man with a round belly." Brittany said simply, releasing the overweight cat out of its carrier just for him to run off in the direction of the spare bedroom where he likes to sleep. "Don't get me wrong I'm sad you'll be gone though too. It won't be the same without you."

Rachel simply smiled back to Brittany trying to keep her emotions at bay because she knew that she was going to miss her friends terribly in the next few weeks. She wanted to enjoy the time she had with them right now before she had to go on this terrifying endeavor.

"Oh no, I know that look. Berry don't go all emotional on me just yet. You act like you're on your death bed right now and we'll never see you again. C'mon don't be such a wimp." Noah reasoned.

"Is it so wrong I'm going to miss you guys?" Rachel asked incredulously. "It's going to be a very life changing experience and I'm not going to have any one of you there to go through it with. It's scary!"

"It's for the best Rach," Blaine said sitting on one of the living room chairs. "You deserve to go out and have fun for once. Focus on what you want for your future."

"Blaine's right," Quinn agreed, taking the seat next to Rachel on the couch. "You're a lovely and independent woman Rachel, but it's high time you let loose. I mean if I hadn't gotten off the couch to go to that awful bar you and Santana dragged me to two years ago Puck and I wouldn't even be together right now."

"I've totally rocked your world too huh?" Puck said smirking and nodding to himself as if he already knew the answer to that. Rachel rolled her eyes at his crude double meaning while Quinn just smiled, blushing slightly.

"Moving on," Blaine said wide-eyed and trying to diffuse the awkwardness he was feeling. He looked around the room, noticing the camera in Brittany's hand. "Brittany what's with the video camera?" They all turned their attention to the blonde curious to know.

"Oh! It's for a special episode of Fondue for Two featuring Rachel as my guest star. I need to get all the dirt on her I can before she goes off to LA tomorrow." Brittany replied. "Plus later Santana and I were going to-."

"Hey guys!" Santana interrupted walking through the front door as she came home from work at just the right moment to stop her girlfriend from mentioning their plans for that night. She threw her keys onto the counter and approached the group sitting in the living room. "God, I'm starving can we eat?"

"Yeah I second that," Rachel agreed, getting off the couch to go to the kitchen. "So what did you guys want to do tonight?" She was excited to spend this last night with her friends doing whatever. They easily provided a distraction from everything. She was going to miss them all while she was away.

* * *

The bar down the block from his apartment was the perfect distraction for Finn as he pondered how his life was soon going to change while waiting for his friends and step-brother to meet him. It still shocked him he even made it through the disaster that was the interview process in LA.

"_Finn Hudson," yelled a strong feminine voice across the room as Finn looked up. He stood up to go meet her knowing it was one of the producers calling him into the office. The tall, blonde woman looked him up and down as he approached her with a hard glare. "Come with me lurch. Time for the interview."_

_Finn was a little taken aback by her cold stare as well as her insult but he shrugged it off as he went into the room. He walked in to see another woman there as well. She was also blond, but didn't look quite as old as the other woman. _

"_Sit." The older woman ordered sitting down. "The name is Sue Sylvester and this is my assistant producer Terri. We're going to ask you some questions and see how you respond to see if you make it through to the show. Got it?" _

_Finn nodded quickly trying not to be intimidated by Sue's powerful demeanor. _

"_Okay first question," Terri started, using a strong yet softer tone than Sue used. "What are the most important qualities in a woman to you?"_

The questions had started off fairly easy to answerand Finn had grown more relaxed as the interview had gone on even with Sue's hard glare on him. However the questions had gotten harder and harder near the end. They asked all kinds of crazy questions to the point where he hadn't known how to answer. Each time he said that a question was tough though Sue would say, _"You think this is hard? Try going ten minutes underwater with no air in order to complete a top secret mission for the government. Now that's hard!", _or something along those lines.

Finn had been put through to the show though so everything was fine. Now it was just his nerves that were going to get him all night long. That's why he had invited his friends out to drink that night before he would be leaving.

"There he is!" Two voices squealed behind him and suddenly Finn felt two sets of arms engulf him. He turned once he was released and greeted the two ladies.

"Mercedes! Tina! What's up?" Finn smiled. He noticed Artie and Mike trailing behind them and saw Kurt bringing up the rear. "Hey Mike. Artie. How's it going guys?"

"It's been good man!" Mike replied giving Finn a fist bump and putting his arm around Tina. The couple had recently gotten married and were coming up on four months of being man and wife.

"Dude I can't believe you're leaving us tomorrow! I hope this girl is worth it." Artie said, reminding Finn of his previous thoughts and worries.

"I hope so too. All they told me was that her name was Rachel." Finn replied sitting back against the bar counter. "Here, guys, order what you want it's on me. Whatever you'd like."

"Are you sure Finn?" Tina asked, ever the one to be polite.

"Hey if he's offering then it's okay," Mercedes told her, winking in Finn's direction to show she was joking of course.

"I'm serious," Finn said. "I'm not gonna see you guys for a while so might as well celebrate." He looked around at his friends smiling and calling the bartender over to them.

"What? Are you already planning on being there for a while?" Kurt asked raising an eyebrow, catching what his brother's words implied.

"Well I'm going to see how far this will go if that's what you're asking. I'm Finn Hudson. I don't give up that easily." Finn replied to his step brother confidently. He had found a sense of calm being around his friends and that gave him the strength to forget his worries. Really, he could only be himself. And Finn really hoped that would be good enough.

* * *

A/N: Sorry for the wait on this one. But thank you so much on the response to this! It's really encouraging to see people like it. Anyways I will try to get another chapter posted sooner from now on & as always Reviews are welcome!


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: Do not own any of the characters from Glee, this is simply for fun!**

* * *

The slight shaking of the airplane woke Rachel up just as she was reaching a peaceful sleep. Looking around she saw many passengers around her reading or talking quietly to their friends traveling with them. She felt a pang in her chest as she watched two women, obviously friends, interact and laugh together, reminding her of her own friends. Rachel missed them so much already even though she had just left this morning.

"_Rachel, are you ready to go? We need to leave soon or you'll miss your flight!" Quinn yelled as she checked her hair in the mirror in the hallway. Satisfied at her appearance she gave herself a grin._

"_I can't do it," Rachel said sadly, sniffling and walking into the room with her hair in braids and in her pink pajamas with fluffy slippers. "I can't go to L.A. and follow through with this. There's no way."_

_Gasping as she saw her friend's appearance in the mirror Quinn turned around and looked at her with a bewildered expression. "Rachel! We have to leave in twenty minutes and you're dressed like a third grader ready to go to her first slumber party! What are you thinking?! C'mon go get ready. You are not backing out now!"_

_Footsteps soon came down the hallway once again and in came Puck in only pajama pants, yawning widely. "Why the hell are you yelling Q? You know I don't like to get up this early for any reason at all, it's why I said bye to Berry last night."_

"_Well excuse me Puck, but if you can't see Rachel has to go soon and she isn't even ready!" Quinn yelled waving her arms at the brunette girl, who was currently sitting at the kitchen table fiddling with her hair. "Santana! Get in here right now!"_

"_God don't get your panties in a twist," Puck mumbled as he went to the kitchen and grabbed a box of Frosted Flakes to eat out of._

_Quinn fixed him with a pointed glare and turned to Rachel again who now had silent tears running down her cheeks. "Rachel you have to go. The producers and everyone else is counting on you. You made a commitment. It's not right to go back on your word now."_

"_What's the problem?" Santana grumbled as she came in and saw Rachel still not dressed. "Shit Berry what are you still doing here! You should be gone already with Quinn to the airport!"_

_Crying even more now Rachel spoke, "I can't go Santana. This was all a big mistake! I had the worst dream last night that I got to L.A. and no one liked me. Not one guy. Do you know how humiliating that would be if that actually happens?!"_

"_Oh geez," Puck sighed loudly, clearly showing his annoyance. "God Rach do us all a favor and go. You have a hot ass and a great body and there is no reason for you to worry. Trust me I would know. It's not like I haven't checked you out before. Every one of those guys is going to want you and to get into your pants."_

_With a disgusted grimace Rachel turned to him in her seat and said, "Noah it may be that you would know what is attractive about a woman but you aren't reliable and it's just one opinion. Plus that is highly inappropriate considering you are dating Quinn, not me."_

"_Puck's right though," Blaine responded coming into the room. Naturally he was a morning person so he was wide awake and heard the whole conversation as he got out of bed. "Rachel I may be gay, but I know for a fact that any guy is lucky to have you. Trust me, when we go out together and walk down the streets a lot of guys look at you, you just don't see it. You need to get over your insecurities and go."_

"_But-," Rachel started to protest, only to be quickly cut off by Santana. _

"_No excuses! I swear to God Rachel if you don't go in 15 minutes I will go all Lima Heights on your ass. I only got 4 hours of sleep and am not in a good mood. You do not want to deal with me right now." _

The conversation had ended pretty much there after that. Rachel went and got ready and soon she had said her last goodbyes to her friends, including Brittany who had just woken up before she had left. Quinn had dropped her off at the airport just in time and before she knew it Rachel had had her last embrace with Quinn before she was off to L.A.

"Attention passengers we will be landing in Los Angeles in twenty minutes. Please remain seated until then," a voice of a flight attendant said over the speakers. This information set Rachel on edge. Twenty minutes. Twenty minutes to still be the normal Rachel, the one that would have never done anything like this at all. She had never been more scared in her life.

As the plane descended Rachel fretted more and more but she knew there was nowhere to go now. This was it. Her life as a single woman was gone.

When the plane landed and she, along with all the other passengers, got off, Rachel headed to the baggage claim and proceeded to go through the airport looking for her ride to where the show was being shot at. Looking to the right of her near the benches by the entrance she saw a sign that read RACHEL BERRY being held by a short, dark-skinned man who was dressed in a suit and tie.

She walked over to the man and with a smile informed him that she was who he was looking for. "Hi, I'm Rachel Berry. I assume you're going to be my ride to the resort where the show is going to be filmed."

"Ah, Miss Berry it's nice to meet you. I must admit I was getting worried you wouldn't show up and that I would have to deal with the terrifying producer known as Sue Sylvester. Have you met her?" The man asked as he took her luggage into his hands, leaving her to only hold her carry-on bag.

"Um, once I believe. I had only a couple meetings with the producers but they were mostly with Emma and Terri." Rachel replied.

"Oh well then you're lucky. Trust me when I say Sue is a menace." He said with a shudder. "On that note we should get going."

"Okay," Rachel agreed following him out to a shiny black limo just outside the entrance. "What's your name by the way? I don't know if you mentioned it."

"My apologies Miss Berry! You can call me Mr. Figgins," He replied as he opened the door for her in the back and then went around to the front and got in. Starting the ignition Mr. Figgins added, "It should be a short trip to the resort depending on traffic. I'm sure you're ready to start the show right?"

"You could say that I guess," Rachel said as she looked out the window from her seat. "I guess I'm just nervous too though. It's not every day you date seventeen different men."

Mr. Figgins had easily agreed with her on that point and afterward had focused on his driving allowing Rachel to take in her surroundings. L.A. was similar to New York in the sense that it had many buildings and seemed to be incredibly populated so she figured she could just pretend it was home to help calm her. She fell asleep a few minutes into the ride and woke when the car was turning into a gigantic home.

"We're here Miss Berry," Mr. Figgins announced. "I hope you enjoy yourself. The mansion is really nice to stay in."

"Thank you for driving me here," Rachel said as the car rolled to a stop. Climbing out the sight took her breath away as she stood before the mansion. The house was a pure white with navy blue shutters open on the outside of the windows, reminding her of the house from the movie The Notebook. It was three stories tall, each having its own balcony which she was sure would give her a nice view of the surrounding area. On the outside in front of the porch were several plants and trees that varied in size and a row of daisies lined the walkway going to the door on both sides. It was absolutely breath-taking and that was just the outside.

"Hello Rachel," a voice came from behind her, startling the petite woman out of her amazement. She whirled around to come face to face with a man who looked to be in his mid-thirties with very curly hair and a friendly smile. Alongside of him was Emma holding a planner in her hand and checking off something on her list. "My name is Will Schuester."

Shaking the hand that he had outstretched Rachel smiled back at him. "Hello it's so nice to meet you. You're the host of the show right?"

"That's right I am. I'll be the one you talk to the most on the air besides the men and I will be the person you can confide to whenever you need help or advice," Will said with a nod of his head. Rachel could tell he was made for this job. It was easy to talk to him because he had such a friendly demeanor and relaxed personality. "I hope you like the mansion. This will be your home for a while."

"It's amazing," Rachel said honestly, looking back once again at the house. "I love it."

Appraising the house for another minute she then looked back to the others. "So Will, Emma is there something you needed from me? I don't mean to be rude. I'm just wondering because I was really hoping to go inside and settle into the place."

Looking at the gold-colored watch on her wrist that matched her shoes perfectly, Emma spoke up, "Actually Rachel we just wanted to check up on you and say welcome. The house should be spotless I mean I went in myself just to be sure. You know how the maids are, they say they cleaned the dust off the light bulbs but it's always-."

"As Emma was saying," Will interjected, noticing she was about to ramble on about the state of cleanliness of the mansion, "we just wanted to make sure you're settling in alright since you have a big night ahead of you."

Putting a smile on her face and being the incredible actress she was Rachel replied nonchalantly saying, "Right. Tonight's the night. I'm actually pretty excited. My friends gave me this huge pep talk this morning and last night before I left so I think I'm ready."

"It's okay to be nervous Rachel," Will said with a knowing smile. Grateful that he understood her anxiety the brunette gave a nod of her head as he continued on. "Just be yourself. That's my best advice."

"Will's right, Rachel, tonight's only the first night so it should be easy. It's like going to a new school. You're just meeting the men and learning a little about them," Emma added, checking her watch again. "Now it's about three o'clock now so we start having the men arrive at about eight so you should probably head in and get settled and ready now. I don't how long it will take you but I know being on plane always makes me want to take a long shower and get clean."

"Okay what time should I be fully ready?" She asked in response to that announcement.

"We'll have someone come get you a little before 7:30," Will answered, already turning to go with Emma back in the direction of the newly arrived car waiting for them. "We'll see you in a few hours Rachel."

"Okay see you then," Rachel yelled loudly to their retreating figures. Turning back to the house and walking up to the front door she let herself in only to be even more amazed by in the inside of the house than she was by the outside. After admiring the house and exploring for a little while longer Rachel headed up to the master bedroom in which she would be staying and saw her suitcase on the bed. Heading into the bathroom she looked at her tired face and saw just how lazy she looked after her day of travel. Her hair was thrown into a messy bun, she had on her favorite pair of yoga pants, and a sweatshirt she bought from her favorite store that was completely worn out. Rachel knew she needed to start getting ready now if she wanted to look nice for her first night on the show.

Putting her worries aside for now she checked her phone one last time before she started her rigorous process of getting ready. Rachel smiled as she saw various texts of _Good Luck!_ from her friends back home and once again found courage in the fact that her friends believed in her. With that she headed into the bathroom and turned on the shower and set out her makeup bag on the counter. She only had a few hours till her life would change and Rachel wanted to look her absolute best for it.

* * *

_Knock! Knock! Knock!_

"Mr. Hudson I'm here to pick you up to go meet with the producers before they start filming. Are you ready to go or should I wait a few minutes?" a soft and hesitant voice asked from behind the door of Finn's hotel room.

Opening the door Finn came face to face with a tired looking, stout man with black hair and a dark green shirt on under his formal coat. "Hey man, I should be ready in a few minutes. I'm sorry to keep you waiting."

"It's no problem Mr. Hudson. My name is Howard Bamboo," the man replied as he leaned against the wall on the side of the door. "We just need to go in about five minutes at least. I don't know how long that is since I can't count higher than thirty but please be ready by then or the producer Sue says I have to leave 'your sad, pathetic self behind'." Putting air quotes around the last part Howard then gave him a nod to let him go.

"Right," Finn said awkwardly as the man waited for him to go back in. "Well I should be done in two so I'll be right out." With that he closed the door and went back into his room. He had his two suitcases packed and ready to go so he went into the bathroom to check that he grabbed all his things in their like his comb and toothbrush. Standing in there he looked at his reflection one last time before he would be leaving.

Finn was dressed in a white formal shirt that he often wore only for weddings and other special occasions and had on a black suit jacket and pants. He had his nicest black dress shoes on that were super shiny from all the disuse of them. And finally he had on his tie that was a pure red like the color his football jersey had been in high school, and even though Kurt had complained about him wearing it when he had called his brother earlier, Finn was wearing it anyway.

"_Finn! You cannot wear that tie tonight when you first meet this girl! It's too bright of a color and it'll make you look like an albino when you meet her. You think she's going to want you stay if you look super white like you've been in the sun before." Kurt screeched into the phone, trying to advice his brother on what to wear for the night. _

"_Kurt, I'm pretty sure it'll be fine. It's not like I'm as pale as the dude in that vampire movie that you've watched at least a zillion times with Mercedes and Tina," Finn replied already putting on the tie without the consent of his brother._

"_First of all Finn, Robert Pattinson had makeup on in Twilight to make him look like that. He actually has a nice skin color underneath all that. And second of all I am begging you not to wear it. The black tie looks much more serious. The red just looks silly when you meet someone," Kurt stated with no hint of amusement in his voice. _

"_Sorry dude but I'm wearing it. If she doesn't like it then so be it, but this is my lucky tie. Plus it's my favorite color," Finn smiled knowing it would bother his brother just that much more._

"_Finn we are talking about meeting a girl you could potentially become engaged to at the end of all this! Don't be such a three year old and wear a tie just because it's your favorite color!" _

_Imagining Kurt pacing and flailing his arms all around in his room was all too easy. In fact if Finn listened hard enough he could hear his younger brother's designer boots clicking on the floorboards. Laughing he responded to Kurt, "Sorry little bro but it's happening."_

_With a huff Kurt spoke, "Fine. I can tell that no matter how many times I tell you you'll never listen. I'm just saying if she sends you home tonight we know why."_

"_Yeah because I'm sure my tie is gonna be the reason she lets me go Kurt," Finn replied, rolling his eyes at his brother's dramatics. Finn would never understand how his brother had gotten rejected from that drama school in New York senior year of high school since as far as he could tell Kurt was always being overdramatic with everything. Of course being rejected there didn't stop him and his younger brother had soon taken a job as an intern at and soon received a promotion. So naturally working there had only fueled Kurt's desire to give Finn a completely new wardrobe. _

"_Whatever Finn. You know my point though. I just want you to really hit it off with this girl," Kurt told him earnestly. "You need someone in your life."_

_Hearing the sincerity in his brother's voice Finn said, "Thanks Kurt. I know you want it to work so badly but I'm just going to let the universe handle it. If we are meant to be together then me and this girl will be together."_

_Sighing Kurt then wished him luck and told Finn he had to go because he needed to start on some project his boss Isabelle had assigned to him to do._

Smiling to himself at his brother's antics and remembering the conversation from earlier Finn ran a hand through his hair and gave himself one last grin in the mirror before heading back to the hotel door and having Howard help him with his bags. He would be staying in a house with all of the other guys so he needed to take everything with him.

I just have to get through tonight, Finn thought on the drive over to the place to meet the producers. After that Finn could only hope everything would go well. Arriving to the house his door swung open before the car even really stopped and he saw the faces of the producers.

"Hello Finn it's nice to see you again," Emma greeted him.

"Pillsbury dough boy get on over here we need to put you in a group," Sue yelled standing in front of a large group of men.

Going through the process of organizing where every man was supposed to go was Emma's job and it took almost a half an hour to get it to perfection for her. In the mean time Finn introduced himself to a few of the men and kept up light conversation with them. Once the red-headed woman was satisfied and Sue stopped criticizing everyone's looks, the men got into the cars and got prepared to meet the woman they would be fighting over. Soon enough they were on their way to meet her and Finn knew that everything depended on tonight.

* * *

"Okay Rachel so all of the men should be on their way over right now. Aren't you excited to be here?" Will asked her as they stood outside the mansion where the men would be staying. He was delivering his questions perfectly and with his personality Rachel was at ease talking with him in front of the cameras and crew.

"To be honest Will I was quite anxious about this and I still am, but I feel like my nerves are slowly changing into excitement you know? This experience allows for so many possibilities and I could potentially find a husband here at the end of this," Rachel said happily, adding the part about finding a husband only because the show producer Terri had told her she has to mention that.

"Well that's great to hear!" Will beamed at her, his forehead crinkling ever so slightly from smiling so widely. He looked her up and down and added "And might I say you look incredible tonight. Those men won't know what hit them."

Rachel smiled at the compliment and silently thanked Quinn, Santana, and Brittany for helping her pick out the incredible dresses she would be getting to wear on every single one of these cocktail party nights. They had gone out shopping the weeks leading up to the show and checked out every boutique and store they could in order to find the perfect dresses for her. By the end of it they were happy with the choices and Rachel loved every single one.

Tonight she wanted to wear a dress that would make her feel comfortable but also beautiful in order to have some confidence in front of the men. After spending the first hour at the mansion showering and pampering herself Rachel got right down to picking out the dress and figuring out how she wanted her hair done. Sorting through the dresses she felt the various fabrics and stared at the décor on each one looking for just the right one. When she had saw it she knew then that she had found the perfect one for tonight.

The dress was floor length and had a sweet heart neckline that exposed a minimal amount of cleavage with which she was comfortable with. It hugged her curves nicely too and flared out a little at the bottom, giving it a kind of mermaid style form. Her favorite part of it though was the decoration on it. The dress was a dark blue giving her skin a nice tan tone to it and on the left side of it was what looked almost like a star sparkling in all directions. The glitter was thick in the center hiding most of the blue in the left corner near the top of her dress and as it spread more of the dark blue fabric could be seen and the streams of silver thinned out. Rachel had specifically loved it for having the glitter on it and she thought it would be perfect to wear for tonight. To finish out her outfit she had on silver open toe sandal heels that had two diamond shaped accessories in the middle of them.

As for her hair Rachel had swept her bangs to the side and curled her long brown hair into wide set curls. One side of her hair was held back by silver bobby pins but was still loose to give herself a nice, simple look to her already sparkly ensemble. The final touches had been her makeup which she kept as natural as possible with a subtle amount of eyeliner and mascara as well as some blush along her cheeks and a touch of lip gloss to her lips.

Rachel felt incredible in her outfit and her confidence was soaring now thanks to Will's compliment. "Thank you, Will. That's sweet of you to say," she replied to his statement.

Hearing the sounds of cars down the street the two looked in that direction and then turned to each other. Will smiling said, "Well, Rachel, here comes the first car. You're going to greet each of the men and once they are all here and inside you just have to go in and mingle with them. Just get a feel of who like and what not, it's all fairly simple."

"Sounds good, Will. Thank you," Rachel told him and with a squeeze to her hand as a sign of wishing her luck Will walked away leaving her alone.

Calling cut the director then told the crew to rearrange the cameras so they could get the angles needed for the initial meetings. While they did this the cars were just outside the gates waiting to pull into the driveway. Trying to keep her breathing even Rachel tried to appear calm as all the preparation for the meetings was happening around her. She looked up to the sky and looked at the stars that were already appearing even though the sun had just gone down. Rachel was the star of this show and she thought about all the control she had in her position. Really there was no reason for her to worry; it was the men who would be leaving, not her.

Finally the preparation was done and with the cameras and lights and everything else in place Rachel went to the spot she was supposed to stand at. Closing her eyes she took one last moment to herself to get ready for the events ahead of her.

* * *

Finn had decided that being in the last car to arrive at the mansion completely and officially sucked. Sure there were other dudes with him too and they seemed pretty chill but he could really feel the nerves settling in for having to wait so long. He kept running his hand through his hair and along the back of his neck as he continually checked out the window to see any form of movement. There was none.

"Hey man I heard it always takes awhile for these first meetings. Don't stress too much. We should be good. You just need to relax." Turning his head to see who was talking he saw a guy about his age looking at him and holding his hand out. The dude's lips were huge and it was obvious he was in good shape based on the way his body sat as if he had no fat on him whatsoever. "The name's Sam Evans. I just thought I should introduce myself. Provide a little bit of distraction for you."

Finn gave him a smile and shook the outstretched hand Sam had put out. "Thanks man. I'm Finn Hudson. Could you really tell I'm nervous as hell?"

"Well by the way you were tapping your foot I think we could all tell Gigantor. Trust me my acting skills allow me to usually keep a calm façade up but you were about to experience hell from me if you weren't going to stop," a man with curly brown hair said from the opposite end of the limo. "I'm Jesse St. James by the way. I don't even know why I'm in here with you guys when I asked specifically for my own ride, but I might as well introduce myself I guess."

Exchanging a look with the other guy from before, Sam, Finn knew that he would not be getting along with this Jesse person. The guy was obviously a douche and seemed like a big prima donna. It was gonna be interesting in the house with him there.

Suddenly the car started to move forward at a slow speed and the men could soon see the entrance of the mansion; the place that these men would be calling home for the next few weeks. It was amazing and Finn knew that it easily cost more than all of the things he owned put together, but what caught his eye more as they kept moving forward was the person standing out front.

Dressed and looking like an angel was the most gorgeous woman he had ever seen. She had on a stunning dark blue dress accentuated with a silver design that looked extremely elegant, but her hair and face looked incredibly natural looking. Her brown hair looked so smooth that Finn wondered what it would be like to run his hand through it and he also noticed how smokin' her body was in the form fitting dress. She wasn't super skinny like you see some girls nowadays but she had a nice curvy figure that was very attractive.

A shallow whistle could be heard coming from one of the guys and Finn looked to see just about every guy staring at the woman they were there for. Luckily Finn was closest to the door and had seemed to have gotten his composure together before anyone else, which allowed him to be the first one out of his car to talk to her. Finn had no idea where this surge of confidence came from but he figured he should go with it. Straightening his tie as he stepped out of the car he saw her looking at him and noticed a small smile on her face. As he walked closer he felt a tightening in his chest and immediately knew this girl, Rachel, he remembered her name being, was something special.

"Hello," she breathed and god was her voice so beautiful. Almost as angelic as her face and Finn had to admit she was even more stunning up close. She had the kind of beauty that was exotic and not at all like any other woman. Her smile just lit up the room and it was impossible not to reciprocate it.

"Hi," Finn greeted, giving her his signature lopsided smile. "My name is Finn Hudson. It's so nice to meet you." And truly it was. Just standing there with her was making his heart thump wildly in his chest.

"Nice to meet you as well, Finn. I'm Rachel Berry. I'm so glad you're here. You have no idea what this means to me," she spoke so sincerely that Finn didn't doubt her for a second that this meant a lot to her.

"Well Rachel I would just like to say you look absolutely beautiful right now," he complimented, noticing the slight blush that stained her cheeks and the way her eyes seemed to light up just a little more too. "I guess I should be going in now since most of the guys are waiting, but I really hope to talk to more. If-if that's okay anyway?"

Finn was really hoping she would say yes to his offer considering that he was already looking forward to spending more time with her, even if there meeting had lasted all of thirty seconds. Finn cursed the person who came up with that rule of a quick meeting. He didn't want to freak her out but there was something that drew him to her already, and he had never felt this way before.

Smiling widely and showing off her perfect set of white teeth Rachel nodded and said, "Of course Finn. I look forward to it. You seem like such a sweet guy."

"Perfect," he beamed in response to her agreement. "I'll see you inside." And with that he walked away thanking his lucky stars that he hadn't messed up the initial meeting like he thought he would. As he looked back Finn saw Rachel staring after him with a smile stretching across her face and he couldn't help but smile back. That is until he tripped over one of the little cobblestones on the pathway up to the mansion and he stumbled forward, catching his balance on the railing of the stairs just barely.

Blushing profusely Finn turned at the sound of muffled giggles only to see Rachel still watching him and trying to be polite by not making it look as if she had seen him trip.

So much for being cool and not screwing up, Finn thought as he quickly scrambled up the stairs and into the house. If that was any indication for how the rest of the night would go, well, Finn could only pray nothing too embarrassing would happen again. Rachel had just witnessed how much of a klutz he was and he didn't want to give her anymore reason for thinking that he was a dork. First impressions were everything after all.

* * *

**A/N: Obviously this took longer to put up than I anticipated but luckily this chapter is longer than the others! Also I just have to comment on the Valentine's Day episode "I Do" and say that my feelings for Finchel were soaring as I watched it. I am more in love with Finn than I was before and I didn't think that was possible. **

**But yeah. So anyways as said before Reviews are Welcome!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: Do not own any of the characters from Glee, this is simply for fun!**

* * *

After the initial meetings there was something that shifted within Rachel that made her feel as if she was an entirely new person. Never had she felt so good about herself or comfortable with so many men before. It was always Quinn or Santana who got the most male attention when they would go out to bars to drink, so to be the center of attention was a nice feeling. She felt gorgeous and wanted and even though she knew nothing about any of these guys yet each one of them had seemed pretty nice.

"Hello my darling Rachel. Don't you look ravishing tonight," said a nasally voice from behind her, alarming her because she hadn't realized there was someone with her. Rachel turned to find who was talking to her and couldn't help but cringe a little inside.

Correction, Rachel thought, everyone of them had seemed nice except for this guy. He is a complete creeper.

"Hello Jacob. How's it going?" she asked politely, trying to push past the nauseous feeling she had. Earlier when Rachel had met Jacob she had immediately known something was off about him. He had roughly hugged her for one thing whereas everyone else was polite and gave her a formal hand shake. His overwhelming appearance also didn't help him and she couldn't help but feel as if Jacob was trying to take a peek down the top of her dress to try to get a glimpse of her breasts.

"Oh you know it's not too bad. I mean the other guys seem okay and all but they definitely weren't who I wanted to be hanging out with," he replied at the same time as he was trying to put his arm around her shoulders. Rachel subtly moved out of the way of his advancements not really comfortable with his already forward moves.

"Really?" she asked trying to act as if she wasn't aware of whom he was speaking about. "Well it seems to me some of the men are very charming. When I met them earlier, they seemed quite sweet."

"Well I don't want to be wasting my time being around them when I can have you," Jacob said boldly. "In fact right now I'm feeling like I should kiss you. I think I'm just going to go for it."

As the words quickly processed in Rachel's mind, her eyes widened and she ducked out of the way just in time, leaving him kissing the space she had previously been. He seemed confused when he realized he had missed his original target but before he got another chance to try Rachel walked quickly away to another room.

"Rachel! Hey how's it going? Would you like a drink?" A man with shaggy hair and kind brown eyes asked. "I don't know if you remember my name but I'm Ryder."

"Oh, Ryder! I'm good thanks for asking," Rachel smiled, accepting the glass of champagne from him. The pair continued to walk through the hallway of the building and into another room passing several other people, who were looking at Ryder with various faces of jealousy. Of course this went unnoticed by Rachel.

"So I wanted to be the first to get a chance to talk to you. I hope that's alright," Ryder explained. "Would you like to sit?" He pulled out the chair for Rachel and she couldn't but think of how sweet he was. Almost like a teenager on his first date with his crush who was willing to do anything for her.

Rachel thanked him for his thoughtfulness and asked him to tell her about himself. She wanted to find out more about each of the men before she decided who would stay. As she listened to Ryder tell her about his family and life in his Florida home she couldn't help but smile. He seemed very genuine and had a well established idea of what he wanted in a relationship.

As Ryder was in the middle of telling her a story about his job as an EMT Rachel felt a hand on her shoulder and looked to see another man, Jesse, if she remembered correctly, standing behind her with a confident smile in place. "Hello Rachel, mind if I borrow you for a minute and talk with you?"

Rachel looked to Ryder, who nodded his head graciously and allowed her to be lead off to another area. As she and Jesse made light conversation she learned that he was a music choir consultant looking to make it on Broadway someday. He liked a lot of the same things as her and told her that he had seen her perform as Elphaba a few months ago.

"You were absolutely stunning Rachel. I mean, really your rendition of _Defying Gravity_ was truly remarkable," Jesse beamed at her. "I think we'd have great vocal chemistry if we ever got the chance to sing together."

"We'll have to see if we can arrange that," Rachel answered back. Jesse was awfully good-looking with his slicked back brown curls and mega-watt smile and based on what she heard he seemed like an exact match for someone as ambitious as she was. It was almost like he was the male version of her, but instead of being weirded out by that Rachel only liked his charm more. Over his shoulder she looked to see movement coming from another room.

Then suddenly it was like she forgot all about Jesse as she saw the man she had met earlier, the one with short brown hair and the most soulful amber eyes she had ever seen. He had grabbed Rachel's attention right away as he had made his way out of the car and towards her in front of the house. He looked so incredibly handsome and she couldn't help but admire the way he looked so confident in himself when he spoke to her. The best part about him though, and the thing that made her remember him the most, was his small mishap going up the stairs.

He had tripped. It was completely obvious he was embarrassed and Rachel tried to make it seem as if she hadn't seen so he wouldn't be humiliated, but he did seem to have noticed her laughter. His cheeks had tinged to this cute shade of red and he had quickly walked away after that, shaking his head as if he couldn't believe he had done that.

To anyone else he would have been labeled as a giant goof but to Rachel it was the most adorable things. Finn, one of the only guys names that she remembered perfectly, was the one guy she had been anxious to talk to tonight so she was especially happy as she noticed him looking around right then, assuming he was searching for her. When he locked eyes with her Rachel couldn't look away and as he started to approach she felt that familiar butterfly feeling in her stomach that she recognized as excitement.

He smiled a tentative crooked smile her way and Rachel swore that her heart had stopped beating. And then it seemed to go into overdrive, hammering wildly in her chest. She returned his smile with a soft one of her own. Then, just as he was a few feet away from her, getting to ready to interrupt whatever Jesse was telling her, Rachel was pulled out of her trance by another man grabbing her hand and pulling her away with an apology.

Rachel looked to see who it was that had gotten to her so abruptly and noticed it was Brody, the muscular brown-haired, blue-eyed man who had also captured a bit of her interest. As she looked over her shoulder she thought she could see that Finn was trying to keep his composure but still looked slightly stunned (and maybe even a little jealous?) by what happened. She smiled apologetically before giving this other man her full attention.

"Hey Gorgeous," Brody greeted as he took her by the hand and walked with her.

"Hey yourself," Rachel said in response. "What's up?"

"Nothing, just wanted a chance to talk to the hottest girl in the room," he replied grinning. "It's not every day that you get a chance like that you know."

"Well I happen to be the only girl here so really there's no competition," she laughed, "but thank you for the compliment. You aren't too bad either." This seemed to make him smile even wider and Rachel couldn't help but be stunned by this man. He was sexy and sweet, and what was even better was that he made her feel like she was wanted.

"Well either way, even if there was a room here filled with women I would still pick you to talk to," he said smoothly and winking in her direction.

Rachel smiled at the compliment and his charm. It seemed like Brody knew exactly what to say at all the right moments. The only problem was she didn't know whether to think of this as a good or bad thing yet.

Sitting down on a bench in the main corridor she asked the basic question of 'so tell me about yourself?' and from there the conversation went on easily. Rachel learned that Brody was only a few years older than her and had a job as a personal trainer in Manhattan.

So that's why he's got a body to die for, Rachel thought as she snuck a quick glance at him up and down and admiring the view. Snapping back to his face when he spoke again he went on to tell her how he had originally been from Montana and only moved to New York because he figured it was better than being stuck among a bunch of cows out in fields.

The conversation was nice, Rachel couldn't deny that, but she also knew that the more time she spent with Brody the less of a chance she could talk to the others. So after a little bit more of talking with him Rachel excused herself and went back into the other room.

Immediately she was pulled away again by another man who introduced himself as Jake. After him she had talked with many other guys as well. One who had a mullet named Rick, another who was very religious named Joe, after him was a guy who was Irish named Rory, and there was even one who could do impressions named Sam. They were all very lovely to talk to- though some had questionable hair in Rachel's opinion- but she still had not talked to a few others, namely Finn.

Before she knew it Will came into the room and announced that it was time for the first selection of men to be done. Conversation time was over and it was on to the serious stuff. Then with that he asked Rachel to come with him to another room to think about it and decide. As she walked away she knew there were several pairs of eyes on her form as she retreated into another area and Rachel knew that one of those pairs belonged to a certain clumsy, amber-eyed man who she hadn't talked to.

* * *

This has to be the worst night of his life, Finn thought. This was it and he was gone for sure. Not only had he tripped and made a complete idiot out of himself in front of Rachel, but he also never got the chance to speak with her at all that night like he had planned to.

Finn had really tried his hardest to find a time when she was alone so he could approach her but it seemed like there was always someone around. While she talked to the other guys like Sam and Rory and even that Jesse dude, he was stuck talking with the other men and making the appropriate conversational starters like Kurt had taught him. It was awkward really and to be honest the only thing he really wanted to do was snatch Rachel away and get in his time with her. But it never worked out. And so now here he is standing in a line with all the other dudes, sweating it out, and waiting for Rachel.

He pretty much figured though that he was a goner. There was no way she would keep him around when she knew nothing about him. The first night was THE night to make an impression and he had blown it. Despair seeped into his body and Finn prepared himself to get ready to go home.

As the object of the men's affection emerged from the hall and came into the room, the light chatter among the guys came to a halt and in its place was an ominous silence. Everyone was waiting with bated breath to know who would stay and who would go. Rachel stood like an angel looking at each one of them while Will once again went over the instructions about what this selection meant.

As a sign of being saved each one of the men who would stay would receive a gold star (apparently Rachel had chosen that out specially) and those who didn't would leave right away.

And then it was time to begin. The incredible beauty standing before him in her sheer blue sparkly dress looked troubled, and he figured it must be hard to be in her position. However, he knew where he was at currently wasn't much better.

Rachel grabbed one of the stars off the table and began calling the names of who she was keeping. There were seventeen guys and at least five were going home.

"Brody," she spoke with clarity and next to him a dude a little bit shorter than him but who was clearly fit stepped forward. He accepted the star from Rachel and with that he was safe. Finn wanted so desperately to be in his spot right then and to have that safe feeling too.

"Sam." She called next and the younger man who had spoken with him before in the car stepped forward. "Hunter." A serious looking brunette stepped forward.

"Ryder." Rachel said and he went and got his star. "Jesse." The asshole with the curly hair went forward and as he was coming back he had a satisfied smirk on his face. Never before had Finn wanted to punch someone so hard in the face.

More names were called after that "Jake", "Joe", "Sebastian", "Dave", "Matt", and "Rory". Each man went up to Rachel and received their star in order to stay. Each name being called meant another star gone and before Finn knew it there was one left. Six guys were left without getting a star yet and Finn was sweating bullets.

"Alright men, Rachel, this is the last star of the night. The last one to get it will be staying and everyone else will say goodbye," Will said coming forward from where he was standing off to the side. And then there was that anticipating silence again.

Rachel looked around at the men and Finn couldn't bring himself to look her in the eyes knowing full well that he had embarrassed himself in front of her. Hell once all his friends saw this he didn't know how he would face them either. Finn looked to the ground and held his breath, waiting anxiously so he could duck his head and sprint out as quickly as he could to not suffer so much humiliation. He just wanted this done with already Finn thought as he closed his eyes.

"Finn."

His head snapped up at his name being called and Finn was pretty sure he experienced some sort of whip lash from it. He stared straight ahead at the beautiful brunette standing at the front of the room but didn't move a muscle. He couldn't have heard right.

"Finn," she called again, with light laughter in her voice. She waved her hand in front of her and he didn't need to be told again to realize she had picked him. His head was swimming and Finn was pretty sure he was in a daze as he walked forward, carefully as to not trip again.

As he approached Rachel he could see a faint smile playing at her lips and felt one making its way onto his own face. This amazing woman had taken a chance on him even though she knew nothing about him and he couldn't have been more grateful.

"Finn would you take this star and please stay another week?" Rachel asked sweetly, a sparkle in her eye as she looked deeply into his eyes. He swore he could get lost in her gaze and as he stuttered on his answer her face only lit up more.

"Y-y-yeah, o-of course." Rachel handed him the star and with that he realized he was able to breathe again. He walked back to his previous spot, pretty sure that he was wearing a smile that could split his face in half.

The men who didn't get their names called soon started to file out and say their goodbyes to those that they had become friendly with over the couple of hours they were there. Finn saw Dave say goodbye to Azizmo and Rick, the dude with the mullet. The others said bye to Shane and Jeff, and while they all went without protest the same couldn't be said for Jacob, the freak with the jewfro.

"This has to be wrong!" He screeched in his terrible voice. "Rachel! My love! You cannot be serious! We have such a great connection!" He rushed forward and tried to grab a hold on Rachel's arm but before he could get to her Finn and Brody blocked her from him and seconds later security guards came and got him.

"We were going to be great Rachel! I don't know what you're thinking with these other chumps!" Jacob continued to yell as he was picked up and escorted out. His outburst had caused a stir in the room and Finn looked back to see Rachel wide-eyed and alarmed.

Putting a hand gently on her bare shoulder he asked "Are you okay?" and felt the goose bumps rise on her skin and a shudder run through her.

It was like some sort of shock ran through both their bodies at the mere, unexpected touch but both chose to ignore it. "Yes, yes. Thank you Finn." She replied flustered and turning to the other guy beside him "You too Brody. Really, both of you. Thanks."

"No problem," they both said in response and shrugging off the ordeal. Finn turned to Brody and gave the dude a fist bump, because, really the guy seemed pretty cool.

Rolling her eyes Rachel added, "I shouldn't be surprised by his reaction, to be honest. He tried to get me to start picking out baby names with him earlier and wanted to take our 'time' upstairs to the bedroom." Upon hearing this, a jealous anger surged through Finn that he had never experienced before. "I obviously refused though. I could tell Jacob was a little crazy."

"Crazy?" Finn said astonished. To him Jacob could be best described as bat shit crazy.

"The guy seemed like a lot more than just crazy if you ask me," Brody added with a look at both Finn and Rachel. Finn nodded in agreement and Rachel could only give a small hum and smile in return before she realized it was time to move on. Will had signaled to her to make a speech and after she said a few words and thanked the other men for staying, the night came to a quick end. It had been a busy day for everyone and all were in agreement when it came to wanting to go to bed.

As Rachel left in her fantastic sparkly blue floor-length dress she said goodnight to the men she passed along the way. When she stopped by Finn and wished him a goodnight he was pretty sure he saw a spark once again in her eye that he couldn't help but hope was just for him.

Maybe tonight wasn't the worst night ever.

* * *

**A/N: So here we go chapter 4 is up! Enjoy! Reviews are welcome as always.**

**P.S. Glee is back tomorrow night! :)**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: Do not own any of the characters from Glee, this is simply for fun!**

* * *

When Finn woke up the next morning the first thing he registered was that he was not in his normal bed. He also realized he heard a faint grunting somewhere in the room followed by the sound of a water bottle being crinkled. Lifting his head and turning back over onto his back Finn looked to find Sam, who was his roommate in the house, doing a combination of push-ups and sit-ups. The young blond was oblivious to Finn waking up until a pillow was thrown at his head, with amazing accuracy.

"Dude, it's eight thirty in the morning and you're doing some sort of full blown cardio workout," Finn told him, pointing out the obvious. "What the hell? Aren't you tired?" Rubbing his hands down his face he yawned, adding emphasis to his point that it was way too early to be awake.

"Of course, it's early," Sam replied back. "But to have abs and muscles like these, you have to make sacrifices. Seriously, man, you should think about working out more. Not saying you're fat or anything but you wanna look your best for Rachel right?"

Trying not to take offense from Sam's comments he said "Point taken." He then moved to get up and started his usual morning ritual of getting ready for the day. Once he was decent Finn went out to the living room and kitchen area to see if anyone else was up. There were, to his surprise, actually several guys up and milling about the room.

"Sup Finn?" Ryder greeted while passing by with a plate of food in hand. "Did you know we had to make our own food? Jesse practically threw a fit when he found out." He laughed seeming to remember what that had looked like.

"Damn, bet that was entertaining," Finn answered regretfully. "Where's he at now?" Looking around he couldn't see the guy anywhere but unfortunately he knew he had to be here somewhere.

Rolling his eyes Ryder pointed to the backyard. "He's practicing his scales or something to 'keep up his astounding vocal abilities.'" Using air quotes around that part, Ryder continued, "Seriously he's gonna be a pain to be around I can tell already."

Finn was nodding his head when there was a faint knocking at the front door followed by several voices coming down the hall. The cameramen and Will walked in recording and yelling for the others to all gather into one room. Finn didn't mind being filmed really since he didn't have to stress about his hair or whatever, like some have to, but right now was not the time to record. He was still wearing his batman pajama pants that his mom had given to him as a present for last Christmas. It was safe to say he knew he was going to look like a big dork on tv.

"So guys today it all starts," Will began, looking to all the guys that had gathered. "Rachel will start to take you guys out on dates to establish a connection. But she doesn't want to do too many individual dates right away." He pulled out a card from his jacket and handed it Jake giving his next instructions. "So here's the date card. If your name is on here you will be going on the date if not, well then, I suggest you find some sort of time within the week to approach her."

Leaving them alone after that Jake immediately stood up and began to read off the list of name of who would be going on the group date. "Alright men here we go. The ones going are me, Matt, Sam, Dave, Ryder, Finn, and Brody."

Relief flooded through Finn as he knew for certain that he had that time with Rachel. He didn't need to go out and try to reach her, which had been proven difficult to do the night before. Not that he wouldn't try if he needed to do it, but things were tougher here. He couldn't just call her or anything as simple as that.

From there the group of men went to go get ready for the day with Rachel. As he dressed Finn smiled thinking of how, even though the night before had been a little inconvenient, it had still been pretty fantastic. Also knowing he would get to see that bright smile of Rachel's was just another added bonus.

* * *

Rachel made her way down to the coastline of the LA beach that her first group date was going to be on trying to hang onto her flip flops with her toes and keep her hair out of her face. The sand was thick so each time she stepped her feet would get stuck and her perfectly manicured toes were getting a big work out trying not to lose her shoes. The wind was atrocious today too causing her once perfectly styled hair to become wind-blown, and not in the good way.

"Rachel!" Terri greeted once she was down on the shoreline, waving over the younger girl to head in the crew's direction. "There you are! I've been waiting for you for a while now. I can't believe you made me wait this long."

Sighing heavily the brunette replied tiredly, "I am so sorry Terri. I just overslept after last night's events. It was such an emotional day you know." Brushing her hair out of her eyes again she saw the producer look at her with narrowed eyes through her light red-colored sunglasses.

"Actually I wouldn't know. But I'm going to say this once and once only. I need you to be here on time no matter what. It is so much more beneficial for me if you are." She turned to the crew and snapped her fingers and motioned for them all to follow. "Days like these are the worst for me because Emma won't be here due to her ridiculous OCD. SO you need to help me as much as possible."

"Okay that's fine," Rachel said closing her eyes and trying to figure out how Terri could possibly have bigger problems at the moment. Passing the water and going towards the makeup artist Rachel sat down to try to let the poor woman fix the mess that was herself.

After some light touch ups of lip gloss and water proof mascara, Rachel got prepared to meet up with the group of guys on their way. She had been pleasantly surprised when the first cocktail party had gone on without a hitch (well until maybe the end). The guys who were left were fantastic and incredible in their own ways but Rachel didn't know if she could fully fall in love with someone. She had little time for this whole process and she was spectacle about how well it would work.

She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't even register the sound of car doors slamming as Rachel gazed out at the cool blue ocean water. She also didn't notice the voices following the slamming of car doors which should have alerted her to the men there. What did eventually grab her attention was when someone yelled her name as they ran through the sand towards her.

Rachel turned to see Sam, rushing towards her, with his large lips spread into a wide set smile. His relaxed appearance immediately put her at ease as well and she welcomed the hug that he gave to her upon greeting. Sam acted as though she was someone he had known for awhile now, not someone who he had just met.

"Hey Sam!" She laughed as the blond picked her up and spun her in a circle. Once he put her down she saw the others had caught up and greeted them as well. "Hello guys how are you doing?" Various answers came from the group and she smiled upon looking at each of their faces.

Finn stood out in the group right away since he towered over everyone else with his large frame. He smiled at her with his signature lop sided grin when her eyes focused on him and him alone in the group, almost causing her heart to stop in her chest. Rachel had to look away quickly before she became too engrossed in the intense stare of his hypnotizing amber colored eyes.

Gesturing around her she addressed the group ready to explain what they were doing today. "So as you all can see I brought you to the beach for the first official date today. I thought it would be nice to start out with something simple and relaxing." She smiled continuing on saying, "Of course, I didn't anticipate this wind coming up but I guess it doesn't really affect you all too much because you don't have long hair like me."

Rachel pulled her hair out of her face once again getting really frustrated with it for getting in her face. She decided to put it into a ponytail though after seeing she had a hair band around her wrist. "So anyways we are just going to hang out today. Like normal friends at the beach. We can do whatever you guys want."

"Sounds great," Brody spoke for the group, taking notice of how the other guys were suddenly unsure of what to do. They had all thought there would be some challenge they had to overcome or some game to do in order to win time with Rachel, like several had seen on the show before (not that any of them would have admitted they watched the show before).

Finn was excited hearing her news though. He honestly had no idea what they were gonna do once they reached the beach but he was glad that they weren't really going to do anything. For one thing it was kinda hot out despite the wind blowing and also no game would mean more time for Rachel. And Finn would eagerly welcome that opportunity.

So the group dispersed, doing as they pleased, though most stayed within range of Rachel. Finn didn't like how he noticed some of the men trying to grab her attention already but he knew that he had to take charge if he wanted any real time with her today. He was just gathering the courage to talk to her when someone, Jake he thought, suggested a game of beach volleyball to keep them occupied for the afternoon. All of them agreed to it including Rachel.

"To be fair though I've never actually played this before so I don't know how well it's going to go," She admitted freely to the group. This left an opening for Jake who took the opportunity to show her what she needed to do in order to play the game. While Rachel was being instructed by Jake the other men divided into teams, trying not to be jealous by the fact that the other man got to spend that time right away with her. Not to mention that along with the instructions came a hands on approach at showing her how to serve the ball and pass it when necessary.

Finn tried desperately to keep his eyes from going back to Rachel and Jake while waiting for them to finish but it was like there was magnet that kept drawing his stare back in that direction. In actuality it seemed like it was that way with every guy.

After her instructional lesson from Jake, who happened to be incredibly patient with her, Rachel called over to the others to start the game. "Alright guys I think I got it down enough thanks to Jake here. Why don't we play?"

"We kinda already split up the teams, Rachel," Ryder announced, "Hope you don't mind."

"Of course not. Whose team am I on?" she asked simply, turning away from them setting her pink and white striped flip flops aside from the area.

"You're gonna be on mine, Sam's and, Finn's team," Brody replied, taking off his own shoes like everyone else had started to do. Rachel grinned at this new information and looked over to see Finn's eyes trained on her, excitement written all over his face to be on the same team as her.

Walking over to the volleyball net a little ways away she looked over her shoulder intending to see if the others were following her, only to be shocked by what she was seeing.

It was best described as every girls' heaven.

All of the guys were stripping their shirts off and discarding them off to the sides with their shoes so they could play. Almost all of them had a body to absolutely die for. She never knew anyone could look as perfect as some of them did and Rachel had to remind herself to not stare. She definitely didn't mind sneaking peeks though.

Brody, Sam, Jake, and Ryder were obviously the most confident ones in the group due to their bodies seemingly almost incapable of having any ounce of fat on them. They each had toned abs that she just wanted to run her hands along and biceps that any girl would swoon over for days on end. She honestly didn't know why any of them didn't have girlfriends already what with the way that they looked.

Rachel looked past them to notice that Finn, Dave, and Matt seemed a little more apprehensive to expose themselves like that in front of her. She didn't know why since really none of them had anything to be ashamed of. Rachel herself could freely admit that she wasn't always comfortable in her own skin around others either so she wouldn't judge them for their insecurities.

"You guys coming over here?" She called to the three still standing a ways back by the shoes. "I don't want you guys to miss out and plus we need you to come play!" Rachel gave a smile to them as encouragement to come over and that had seemed to get them to come.

"Boys, I want you to know that I am not judging you on what you look like. You can relax around me. There is no pressure since we are all in this together," she told them as they came nearer. "Now Finn get over here. You're on my team."

Turning back to her team with determination set in her face they huddled together to form a plan. "Just so you know guys Rachel Berry likes to win." Looking at each one individually in the eyes, brown ones meeting blue, hazel, and amber, she accentuated her words. "I. Play. To. Win."

After quickly discussing strategy the teams got into position and started to play. On her team Finn was the server whereas Rachel was in the front as one of the players who would be setting and passing the ball for one of the other guys to hit or spike over. They actually had a fairly good team seeing as Rachel quickly realized she was no good at the game and often missed the ball when it came her way. Sam had tried to show her again during the game how to pass the ball correctly and while he was doing that the game was on a quick time out.

It was blazing hot outside now with the sun directly over head and shining its bright light upon each one of them. There was not a cloud in sight and the blue sky seemed to stretch on endlessly. Rachel was just thinking about how lucky she was to have remembered to put on sunscreen when she noticed Finn walking over to the side of the court and taking his now somewhat sweaty grey t-shirt off his frame.

She was pretty sure right then and there that Finn Hudson could not get any better than he already was.

He wasn't the most toned person out of the group, that much was obvious to Rachel. However she still didn't know what he had been so self conscious about before. His abs though not as defined as the others were still very attractive if not more so because she could see that he wasn't like some Greek god. He was just an average person. His arms were another thing entirely though.

Rachel was easily aware of how big Finn was because he towered over everyone in the group. And before she was able to tell that his shoulders were very broad and muscular. But seeing his arms now with no barrier covering them was indescribable. She just had this desire to see what it was like to be held close by him, knowing somehow that his embrace would leave her feeling protected and special.

She was also very attracted to the tribal band tattoo that was on his right bicep, not usually one for tattoos such as that. She wondered what it was from or what it meant to him.

Rachel realized too late that she was staring because after a moment Finn must have felt her gaze on him since he looked straight towards her. She looked quickly away, blushing at having being caught admiring him from afar and also realizing that her mouth had been hanging open making her look like an idiot. When she looked down though she missed the way Finn smiled after seeing her looking.

He was aware that he didn't exactly look like all the other guys but knowing he could still attract her attention was enough to make him feel great about himself. His smile was short lived though as he saw Matt come to Rachel and quickly took her aside to talk. It was also noticed by the rest of the guys.

"So Rachel," Matt began as they walked away from the group and towards the waves. "How are you liking the beach? Not many around where you live I'm guessing right."

Laughing lightly she looked to him noting how calm he was and peaceful his face was looking out to the distance ahead. "You could say that. New York definitely isn't known for its beaches that's for sure."

"Yeah being from Missouri has the same disadvantage," he agreed.

"You live in Missouri?" Rachel asked generally curious. "What do you do there? What's your job?

"I'm a chef for a restaurant I own in town. It's nothing fancy but it was passed down from each generation in my dad's family. It's important to me." He smiled as if remembering some fond memory associated with the place.

"That's really cool actually. A man that knows how to cook all sorts of things is always attractive."

Just as Matt was about to respond back, the group was calling them back to finish their game and Rachel looked to him apologetically. They headed back over much to everyone else's delight but before they continued Rachel paused on the side to take her purple tank top off in order to try to get cooler.

Finn instantly had to summon the mailman, his trick he had come up with back in high school to stop from getting too excited when it came to girls. He hadn't had that problem in a really long time, but upon seeing Rachel and her perfect body he nearly lost it.

Her perfectly tanned skin looked even darker in comparison to her light pink bikini top, causing her to have a very nice glow, and her white shorts made her legs look impossibly long. Her stomach was flat and without her shirt on he could easily see her nice curvy figure. He also couldn't help but sneak a peek at her breasts which were not that large but seemed absolutely perfect in his opinion. He could see the swell of them peeking out from the tops of her swimsuit and he wondered what it would be like to feel them in his hands.

"Alright guys ready to start again?" Rachel asked, seemingly unaware of all the appreciative looks she was getting from all the men. Her question broke them out of their staring and the game continued once again, though Finn noticed how the others would take a moment to enjoy the view that was Rachel. It exactly what he was doing too.

Later on in the night the group was sitting around the small fire they had built to stay warm as the sun continuously set on the horizon illuminating the sky in various colors.

"So you all had fun right? I hope you weren't disappointed about today, but I wanted it to be relaxing and calm before anything else." Truthfully Rachel had wanted this group date like this because she didn't want to have to deal with anything too intense just yet. Her question was met with grins and replies that reflected positive feedback much to her pleasure.

After their volleyball game Rachel had talked to almost all of the guys on the date, except for one: Finn. Right now he was currently across from her laughing at something Sam had said and conversing with Brody. She watched as his laughter caused his mouth to open widely and his eyes to squint just a little more than they usually do. He was one of the men who interested her the most but had not gotten to talk to at all. For all she knew he was a charmer who was a bit clumsy.

Standing up from her current spot next to Ryder on a log Rachel stretched her body after having sat for so long and excused herself. "Finn," she called over to the broad shouldered, messy haired man attracting his attention immediately from his conversation. "Can I talk to you for a bit?" Without waiting for an answer she began to walk off towards the shore once again to get away from the others stares and get a moment alone with him.

Finn had been shocked when Rachel singled him out in the group to talk to and watched as she started to walk away from the fire. This was what he had been waiting for but it was a nudge from Sam that got his body moving from his spot on the sand to go follow the petite brunette.

He quickly caught up with her due to his long legs giving him a great advantage and just as she reached the area where the waves were coming in he was there too. They stood in a peaceful silence for a few minutes admiring the view of the sun setting across the water until Rachel sighed and looked over to the tall man next to her.

"I bet you're wondering why I asked you to walk with me," Rachel said, breaking the silence between them. She glanced at him from the corner of her and saw him watching her, nodding in response to her statement. "I just thought I owed it to you. I could tell you are the kind of guy who is so patient and polite when it comes to this. I saw it in you last night too. I don't know if you knew I saw but I know you tried multiple times to talk to me."

"Which never really worked out," Finn sighed, frustrated with himself and his actions. "Look Rachel I'm sorry about that-."

"Sorry you didn't talk to me?" she asked looking at him fully now, disbelief coloring her tone. "Finn it's not a problem at all. I completely understand that the position you and all those other guys are in." Her brown eyes searched for understanding in his face, trying to convey that she wasn't upset he hadn't tried harder.

Believing her words Finn allowed relief to flood through him, not realizing just how worried he had been about all this. "Thank you by the way. I really appreciate it." He looked to her giving her a small grin.

Rachel grinned easily back. "For what?"

"For taking this chance on me. I know you saw me trip last night going up the steps of the mansion. You must have thought I was an idiot."

Immediately denying it Rachel said, "No I didn't. There was no way I could! I didn't expect really, and you obviously weren't either." She started to giggle at the memory of seeing this handsome, charming man tripping over a stone in the pathway. Yes, he was clumsy but it was endearing.

"Hell no," he agreed, joining in her laughter because it was infectious. "Definitely not one of my finer moments. But it still doesn't beat the time I accidently broke a girl's nose dancing." Rachel looked to him with wide eyes after he said this and at first he was worried she would think bad of him for laughing at that. But she dissolved into more laughter after a moment and Finn couldn't help but think how cute it was. He liked being the cause of her laughter.

"You broke a girl's nose?!" she asked incredulously around giggles she still couldn't contain. "Should I even ask how you did that?"

"Probably not. Wasn't so pretty but if you ask me another time I could tell you," he replied attempting to be smooth with his answer and sneaking in a hint that he wanted to be able to talk to her again.

Rachel smirked catching his hint easily. "I see what you did there." She winked, laughing lightly as she watched him shrug his shoulders in shyness.

"Can you blame a guy for trying?" he teased back. "I'm just glad I got this time with you. After all I'm sure the guys are wondering what's going on."

They both looked behind them seeing the glow of the fire and the bodies around it once again. The sky was getting darker each minute due to the sun going down and they knew they should be getting back to the group soon to be fair to the rest of them. Well Rachel was thinking that, but Finn was happy to be away and alone with her.

"You're probably right huh?" She said after observing the others and seeing them still conversing though some would try to casually look over in their direction to see what she and Finn were doing. "I guess we should go back. But I definitely liked getting to talk to you Finn." And she was being completely honest. The conversation she had with him wasn't at all like the others she had.

It wasn't the same 'what's your job, where do live, etc.' questions she'd been asking the others. It was just a simple, light, and easy talk. It was really nice actually.

"Same here, Rach," Finn said, letting the nickname slip easily from his mouth. Rachel smiled in response and thinking that the nickname was just further proof he was a sweet, polite, and friendly guy.

They walked back slowly taking their time and soaking up the company of one another before Rachel once again broke the silence. "Yes," she said, to which Finn looked at her confused.

"Huh?" he asked not sure what she meant since they hadn't been talking about anything on their walk back to the other dudes.

Rachel looked to him her long brown hair framing her face sweetly and nudging his arm lightly with her hand, the action sending sparks through both of them. "Yes I would like to hear that story and talk to you again," she replied, answering his question from before.

Finn, now understanding what she meant, flashed another one of his heart stopping smiles and Rachel noticed his eyes brighten at her comment. He was happy that she pretty much told him she wanted him to stay so they could talk again. Even if before all they had talked about was his clumsiness mostly, it was still something.

* * *

**A/N: all reviews are welcome! Hope you guys like this. **


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: Do not own any of the characters from Glee, this is simply for fun!**

* * *

The next morning Rachel woke up in what was probably the most comfortable bed she had ever slept on. The morning sun was streaming through the windows and she could hear the faint sounds of birds chirping just outside. She rolled over onto her side after stretching her body out and rubbing the sleep from her eyes to look at the clock.

It was only 7:15 in the morning.

Normally Rachel was one for sleeping in seeing as how often she was at the theatre so late into the night. It also didn't help that in New York it was never so quiet like it had been here. But last night had been so blissful and calm that she actually had a good full night of sleep.

She also couldn't help but smile at the memory of last night when she had gone to bed.

"_Rachel," a voice called to her from somewhere nearby._

_A hand moved against her arm trying to get her attention but she didn't notice. She was asleep and she was too relaxed to care._

"_Rachel," the voice called again a little more firmly than before. Again she felt a hand on her arm and started to stir as the shaking was also followed by a rumble underneath her as if from a car going over a speed bump on the road. _

"_Hey Rach, wake up," the voice whispered to her, more clear than it had been the first two times. "Wake up. We're back from the beach now." Rachel was still in a daze as she tried to get a feel of her surroundings but all she could really tell was the voice. It was definitely masculine and very soothing. So soothing in fact that she didn't even bother to try to open her eyes again and instead succumbed to her sleep._

_She faintly heard the sounds of car doors being opened and footsteps coming nearer but didn't fully register that the car she was in had stopped outside the mansion and she was now home. _

"_Hey Will, Rachel and all the other guys passed out on the ride home. I don't really wanna wake her up cause I mean look at her. She seems pretty out of it," the voice said to Will but now seemed to be a lot further away than before. "You think it's okay if I take her in and put her to bed? I'll be really quick I promise."_

_Will chuckled at the other man but agreed since she seemed to be in no shape to even make it all the way inside since she was so wiped out. "Sure thing. That's really nice of you." _

_With that permission the man from before came back over and unbuckled Rachel from her seat in the car and gathered her into his arms. Through her dazed and half conscious state the one thing Rachel fully noticed was how comfortable and secure she felt in the arms of this person. They carried her from the car, up the stairs, and through the house as if she weighed as much as a feather, but also with as much care as if she were the most delicate thing in the world. _

_The man asked one of the workers for directions through the house and to her room and as he spoke she felt the vibrations of his voice against her cheek. She nuzzled the side of her face further into his broad chest and when she put her next to it she heard the faint beating of his strong, steady heart. _

_It was definitely relaxing and when he finally reached her room Rachel found herself a little more conscious than before but still struggling to open her eyes to see just who it had been to treat her so well. She felt him put her gently onto the bed and pull the covers up around her making sure she was comfortable and warm enough during the night. _

"_Wait," she said weakly, reaching out to the hand that was still on the covers. "Please stay." Rachel knew it was pointless to ask especially since she had all those other men to think about but she had felt so safe with this man that she wasn't ready to let him leave just yet._

_The man laughed lightly seeming to know that she wasn't completely awake at the moment. But instead of taking advantage of her and climbing into her bed, Rachel felt a pair of lips kiss her softly on the forehead before she heard the sounds of retreating footsteps._

_She looked over towards the doorway to try to get a glimpse of just who it was that had treated her so tenderly and sweetly but only saw a silhouette of an arm closing the door behind himself._

Rachel thought about that all throughout the morning as she got ready for the day ahead of her. She was just finishing putting her hair up into a braid when the doorbell rang and one of the workers called down to her to let her know she had a visitor.  
Rachel, thinking it might be Will or one of the producers, headed down to the entryway of the mansion. It didn't even occur to her that one of the guys might want to visit until she saw him.

His muscular frame, the black athletic shorts and white shirt he was wearing accentuating his athletic ability, and that spiked brown hair that was perfectly styled.  
"Brody?" She called to him and when he turned around to face her his face broke out into a massive grin. "What are you doing here?"

Stepping forward to meet her he grabbed her hand as she reached the last step of the stairs. As Brody lead her outside he said, "I was out on a morning run when I happened to pass by." And she knew he wasn't kidding. Rachel could see the beads of sweat clear on his face still, obviously from hard work, and though it was a little gross she didn't mind too much. "I thought I should say hello and thank you for that date again yesterday. It was great."

She smiled in return and laced her fingers through his as they walked out front. "It was no problem really. I had some really good company, you know." He winked in her direction at that and Rachel continued. "You were fantastic by the way, playing volleyball."

"Checking me out were you?" He teased nudging her a bit as her cheeks reddened. "It's alright, you know, I mean, I couldn't help but look at your hot self either. So we'll call it even."

"Deal," she agreed laughing easily with him and realizing they had come to the end of the driveway leading up to her place. "What are you and the others doing today?"

"Nothing much really. I think they all just wanted to relax for the day. Play some video games, pig out on the food, sleep..." He trailed off answering her question.

Rachel smirked, "So basically typical guy stuff."

Smiling in response Brody nodded. "Yeah, typical guy stuff."

There was a moment of silence between the two as they contemplated about who should say bye first when Rachel got an idea. She'd be going down to visit all the boys anyway so...

"Hey Brody you want to walk back to the house together? I wanted to hang out with you guys today."

His blue eyes sparkled at the chance and he smiled at her, a large grin on his face. "It would be my pleasure. In fact," he said mischievously, "I can do you one better."

* * *

Finn once again awoke to the noise of Sam working out in their room and while he was a little annoyed he didn't want to get in a fight with him about it. Besides, as he was getting out of bed and was heading down the hall to get some breakfast in the kitchen, his mind was flooded with memories of the night before.

Rachel Berry. The woman he had met only days ago already had entranced him with her beauty and her personality.

His time with her at the beach had been great. Easy banter back and forth and he felt like the progress they were making was pretty good. He couldn't take his eyes off of her all night because he was so in awe of her.

Finn's favorite part though was the ride home from the beach. All of them including Rachel had to go home in the SUV they had come in before and there wasn't much room. Rachel had taken the seat in the very middle of the car, allowing everyone else to silently argue over who got to sit by her on the way home. They ended up doing Rock Paper Scissors to see who got the two spots and luckily for him, Finn had won. (What could he say? He had skills after battling so many times with Kurt over the years of whose turn it was to do the dishes and other crap around the house.) So it had been Finn and Rachel along with Ryder all in a row, while the others were in another row and one sat up front with the driver.

The ride back had been really long due to traffic so while they had stayed entertained through talking and casually listening to the radio eventually fatigue caught up with all of them. Finn had fallen asleep just as the others had but when he woke up he had felt something weighing down on his shoulder. He looked to his side and there was Rachel snuggled into his side peacefully asleep, her head resting on his shoulder.

Finn had smiled at the image because Rachel looked so relaxed and angelic in her sleep, effortlessly looking beautiful. He obviously did not watch her the rest of the way back because, c'mon, he wasn't a creeper like that, but he did wear a grin on his face the rest of the way home, which only grew bigger each time she would snuggle into him a little bit more.

When they had finally gotten back to the house every passenger in the car except for Finn was still sound asleep, including Rachel. He didn't want to have to wake her up from what seemed to be a peaceful sleep, so upon arriving, when he had seen Will, Finn jumped at the opportunity and offered to just take her up to her room instead. Will went easily along with it, so when Finn picked her up in his arms he treated Rachel like the most precious thing in the world. She fit easily in his arms and when he finally got to her room, after asking for direction from one of the workers, he was pleasantly surprised when Rachel had stirred.

Whether she was conscious or not she had asked him to stay with her. He wanted to so badly and it would have been easy seeing as all the other guys were unaware of everything happening. But Finn hadn't wanted to take advantage of her sleepy state. (It was something he learned from his mom never to do.)

So instead of staying Finn simply kissed her forehead, letting his lips linger there for a second longer than necessary. She might not have been fully awake during that moment but for Finn it had felt like the most natural thing in the world to do. Done off of instinct in fact. He could only imagine what it would be like to actually kiss her. And after that he had reluctantly left her behind to go home with the others.

"Morning Finn," Rory called out to him in his Irish accent bringing Finn back to reality. He had just entered the kitchen to see once again breakfast had already been made and set out to grab.

Finn said his other good mornings and various greetings to the guys as he saw them and once he was done with that immediately dug into the eggs that he had on his plate. He listened as some of the guys who were in the group with him told the others about what happened on their date, but Finn couldn't help but feel like he was the luckiest one out of them.

Maybe he was being delusional but Finn could have sworn Rachel kept throwing him glances and small, subtle smiles all throughout the date. Whereas for the others they only really ever had her full attention if she was being directly talked to.

"So what's everyone doing today then?" Finn asked checking back into the conversation after coming out of his thoughts.

Around a mouthful of toast Jake answered, "All the guys seem to wanna just chill today. Apparently there's an Xbox 360 here or something."

"Awesome. Sounds great." Picking up his plate after finishing, Finn went to put his dishes away in the sink and when he was just reaching it he faintly heard the sound of the front door opening and closing.

Usually nobody would really pay attention to the door just cause a lot of people, the guys and the crew, had been constantly coming and going over the course of the days. But everyone seemed to stop and look, Finn included, who dropped his plate in the sink with a clatter, when they all heard what was distinctly a girl's laugh. Followed by a guy's laugh. When Finn was met with the sight of the pair coming into the kitchen his heart nearly stopped.

Coming into the kitchen was Rachel looking as pretty as ever dressed in a blue and white stripped strapless sundress, her hair in a braid holding all her hair back neatly. She wasn't walking though, she was riding on Brody's back piggy back style. With her arms around his neck from behind and legs wrapped around his waist, Brody wore the biggest shit eating grin when he walked in and greeted all the guys.

"Hey guys. I was just out for a jog when I happened to find this one," gesturing to Rachel with his head, he continued, "she wanted to hang out with us today. Hope you don't mind I brought her back with me."

"Yeah I'm so sorry you guys," Rachel piped in, "I just- I knew I would be bored today so I thought it'd be better to hang out with you all instead."

She was obviously waiting for some sort of response from the others but she was met with silence as the men were all too busy looking at her perched on Brody's back.  
"Um, Brody, you- you can let me down now," Rachel mumbled, now sensing the awkward tension. Once she slid off and was on her feet she spoke again. "May- maybe I should just... go and come back later."

"No Rachel it's cool. You're welcome to hang with us now."

All heads turned to Finn as he spoke up to stop her from leaving, surprising the others as well as himself. In truth he was jealous with the fact that somehow Brody had found a time to get her all alone to be with her. And the way they had been so comfortable with each other a second ago made him question whether he was right in his earlier assessments in his connection with her. Cause really now that he thought of it Brody had been by him a few times when Rachel had smiled at him.

Yeah, he was definitely worried now.

* * *

When Rachel had come in to the house with Brody after their walk back from her place she had sensed the awkward tension quickly. She didn't really understand why at first but she realized after a minute that it probably didn't help that she was on Brody's back, which for the record was just because he had insisted on it. He didn't want her to get blisters from her flip flops on the long walk back.

She instantly felt bad when she looked at the faces of the men in the house, clearly caught off guard and at least a little bit upset. But when Finn had told her it was cool for her to hang out Rachel felt her stomach twist in knots from the expression on his face. It was a combination of hurt and anger and what was worse was he wouldn't even look her in the eyes.

Really it was all innocent but a mishap in judgment had caused half the guys to act quite unusual. Even now an hour and a half later it was still tense among certain people. But Rachel knew that there was no taking it back now and that she had to move forward.

"Rachel. Rachel, hey where'd you go?" Sam joked with her, waving a hand in front of her face. "C'mon now focus. Call of Duty ain't easy to play."

Smiling at Sam's teasing Rachel turned her attention back to the matter at hand. Which currently was some shooting/combat game that all these guys liked.

"I just don't understand this, and to be honest it's kinda scary," she said, trying to watch the screen but having to look down too to see which buttons to press.

"Scary? Seriously?" Hunter asked incredulously. "I thought for sure you were tougher than that, Rachel."

"I can assure you I can be tough when I want to be Hunter," she shot back at him, not liking the way he implied she was weak. "I just happen to think this is way too violent for someone to play."

From another seat on one side of the room Jesse brushed his hand through his curly hair and spoke up. "Yes! Thank you Rachel!" Pointing towards the others accusingly, "That is exactly what I said about the game. It is way too barbaric and, in my opinion, just fuels the violent thoughts in people's minds in today's times."

"That's not true," Sam responded offended, watching the screen as he had taken the controller from Rachel and was now playing in her spot. "Look not everyone is like that okay? I play this game and there is nothing wrong with me."

"Not that we know of yet..." Jesse mumbled, rolling his eyes annoyed.

"Well I'm just saying, violence isn't something I tolerate," Rachel concluded. "I don't mind this, since it is a game after all, I just happen to prefer something... a little more cultured. You know? Like Broadway!"

"Exactly!" Jesse agreed quickly, moving to sit next to her in a now vacant spot on the couch. "Broadway is one of those places where everything is sophisticated and has the purpose to broaden the minds of people with its elaborate productions. While on this side of the spectrum you have this..." He gestured towards the Xbox and tv, distaste coloring his tone, "A game that not only promotes violence but also proves to show how uneducated society is nowadays."

"Well Jesse we can't all be perfect now can we?" Sam glared at him.

Feeling as though a pointless argument was going to break out Rachel excused herself to go grab a bottle of water. Then sure enough when they thought she was out of earshot she heard the insults start. They were boys though, Rachel thought, they had their fights and got over them. She was just entering the kitchen when she saw Finn sitting at the table, looking at an app on his smart phone. His shoulders were hunched and his brow was scrunched in concentration so he didn't see her standing there. But before she could say anything another voice came up behind her.

"Hey Rachel," Sebastian greeted walking past her into the kitchen. His greeting to her caught Finn's attention and he turned to see her there. "You think you're gonna join us outside soon? It's freakin hot outside but the pool's pretty great."

Breaking eye contact from the most enchanting pair of amber eyes she had ever seen Rachel answered. "Uh, I- I don't, um, I'm not sure. I didn't really bring a swimsuit today."

"That's too bad," the tall, lanky man responded. "Maybe some other time then? I know you weren't completely prepared to come over today as early as you had anticipated but you know..."

"Yeah, yeah. That sounds great," Rachel said ignoring the subtle jab once again at the situation from this morning. "You're right. I wasn't completely ready yet but I don't think it was a big deal."

Sebastian only hummed in response putting on his sunglasses, which he had come inside for, before he started to head out to the backyard again. "Well you are free to join if you would like."

Once he exited the room it was once again her and Finn in the kitchen. He had looked away from her while she was talking to Sebastian and was now continuing to avoid eye contact with her. The atmosphere was tense and it seemed to Rachel that this was the one person she had hurt the most, though she couldn't be sure since his feelings were being hidden so well. She moved across the tiled floor and opened the fridge door, reaching in and grabbing a water, stalling for a minute. She was trying to come up with some way to strike up a conversation with him while she took a large sip from the bottle.  
Just as Rachel was about to speak up though Finn stood abruptly looking anywhere but at her. "Okay I think I'm just gonna go-."

"Finn," she called stopping him from going.

"Yeah?" He asked turning around but still not looking completely at her.

"I really hope you aren't mad at me for-."

"It's alright Rach," Finn said interrupting her. "Really, don't worry." He moved to continue his walk out to the back, but Rachel couldn't let him go so easily knowing it wasn't fine yet.

"Wait, Finn," she said walking quickly after him, "Please just wait- just stay I- I can explain." She grabbed onto his forearm to keep him in place.

"Rachel, it's no big deal like you said," he tried to assure her, failing miserably.

"It's obviously not. I mean, like honestly, you won't even look at me," she pointed out. It had been bothering her the whole time. "Just look at me Finn. _Please_."

He brought his eyes up from where he was staring at his feet to meet hers and it allowed Rachel to see the hurt in his eyes. It twisted her stomach knowing she had been the one to cause that.

"I'm sorry," she began, "I didn't intentionally come with Brody this morning to get a rise out of all of you."

"We know that. Rach, no one here thinks you did it on purpose."

"But that doesn't explain why you're being weird around me. I just want you to be honest with me... Are you mad?"

She was searching his eyes, looking in them, coaxing him to tell her the honest truth. "No," he said firmly, "I'm not mad. I won't lie it took me by surprise and made me really question myself, but no I couldn't be mad at you."

"I don't understand. What do you mean question yourself?"

Sighing deeply and glancing away from her for a minute, Finn noticed the cameras that were set up in the corners of the room, knowing full well that everything happening was being recorded.

"I guess it just, I don't know, like made me feel insecure? I don't know. It's weird Rach. I've only known you for a couple days but I-."

"You what?" She prompted him after a moment of silence, watching as he ran a hand through his messy brown hair and along the back of his neck.

"I like you. Like I'm _very_ attracted to you. And our time together, I know, has been really small, but it makes me smile to think about. Cause I like being around you." He told her looking into the depths of her chocolate brown eyes. "Like last night."

She smiled at the memory of their conversation on the beach. It had been the one conversation she had actually truly and fully enjoyed because it was natural. "Last night at the beach was nice," Rachel agreed.

"Well yeah but I- I, um, meant something else actually," Finn mumbled nervously. She really had been asleep, he thought. "After the beach when we came home, I, uh, took you inside up to your room so you wouldn't have to wake up."

Noticing her eyes widen he continued on quickly explaining himself. "I swear it was all innocent! I had no ulterior motives or whatever, you just looked, so relaxed, you know. I didn't want to have to wake you." He was blushing by this point and was again back to not looking at her because of his confession.

She was speechless to say the least considering Finn had just answered the question that had been plaguing her mind all day. Rachel wanted to know who it had been that took care of her last night but didn't want to seem to desperate. She had started to think after this morning's walk it had been Brody since he had seemingly come to check in with her this morning. Plus he had offered to carry her.

However now knowing it was Finn it made the memory flood back through her mind and gave her butterflies in her stomach once again.

"That was you?" She asked quietly.

Finn nodded his head and looked at her with some sort of emotion swirling in his eyes. "Yeah I just thought it was something I should do. You know? Actually I didn't think about it too much, I just kinda did it. Like on instinct."

A slow smile spread across Rachel's face with each word that passed over Finn's lips. Her conscience had been right. He was a sweet, caring man who just happened to be a bit clumsy from time to time.

"Thank you," Rachel said, trying to convey her sincerity. "Really Finn that was the sweetest thing you could have done for me."

He grinned in response but suddenly had a thought. "Wait, so, um, do you- do you remember it then? Remember when I carried you up to your room last night?"

Rachel nodded shyly in return, her voice taking on a soft tone, "Yes Finn. I may have been half awake but I do remember it." She smiled a bit wider as she thought about the kiss he had given her on her forehead before he left. "All of it."

He smiled sheepishly and looked down, a moment of silence once again entering the conversation as each of them thought about the previous night again. Rachel was playing with the hem of her dress which then captured Finn's attention.

"I like your dress," he said quietly. "It's very cute on you."

Her cheeks turned pink as she looked back at him. "Thank you, Finn. It just so happens to be my favorite dress from home. Though my friends say just because its comfy to wear, it doesn't mean it's worthy of wearing in public." Rachel was babbling she knew but something about being in this man's presence affected her.

"They sound like my brother then," Finn replied laughing lightly. "Although I'm sure he's worse considering he's some big hot shot that works at Vogue."

"Your brother works at Vogue?!" She asked surprised. "Oh my gosh that's so amazing! I bet it's so fabulous there."

Shaking his head Finn looked to her eyes which had lighten up with joy. "Yeah it's cool for him, but for me, not so much. I think ever since he started working there it kinda just fueled his motivation to get me to throw out some of my clothes." Rolling his eyes he continued, "He says they are 'out of season' or something."

"Well from what I've seen I think you look very... nice, in your clothes." She wanted to say he looked cute, because, really, he was cute. Right now he was wearing a pair of cargo shorts with a navy blue football t-shirt, his hair was sticking up messily, and his feet were bare.

"Ha. Thanks," Finn said looking at his own shirt. "This is one of the only t-shirts Kurt doesn't mind."

Rachel giggled, "Did he pick out the clothes he approved of for you to take here?"  
"Well... Most of them," he shrugged embarrassed. But soon joined in her laughter at how ridiculous it was.

"Don't worry my friends are the same way with me," Rachel assured him. "My friend Santana practically tackled me when she saw I wanted to take this dress. She says I look like how a kindergartener would dress."

"Well like I said it's cute."

The two stood there in the hallway looking at each other for a moment, feeling as if something was about to happen. Finn hadn't realized how closely they were standing until then as he looked to the petite woman beside him. Rachel bit her bottom lip as she stared at Finn, who was now looking back and forth between her lips and eyes. He wanted to kiss her, he really did, but there was a part of him that was nervous, afraid of the uncertainty with which this whole situation had given him. Rachel gave him a small nod looking deeply into his eyes, as if assuring him it was okay so he took it as a sign of approval and leaned in.

He was inches away from her face when he saw Rachel close her eyes and release her lip from in between her teeth in anticipation. His heart was racing in his chest, pounding erratically. As he was mere centimeters away from her lips he heard the sharp intake of her breath and he closed his eyes, ready to close the distance between their mouths.

_Bam!_

The sound of the back door slamming caused the two to jump back and away from each other in surprise. Both were wide-eyed, surprised by what had come over them to almost kiss a second ago.

They looked towards the sound of footsteps coming around the corner to see Brody, a bathing suit on and a water in his hand.

"Hey guys!"

"Hey Brody," Rachel greeted looking to him and then glancing at Finn, who still looked a little stunned but now had an annoyed glint in his eye as his attention had been turned to Brody. "What's up?"

"Just passing through. Had to grab a water after being outside in the heat for so long. But now that I think about it I just remembered Matt did say he wanted to talk to you Finn."

"When did he say that?," Finn asked, eyes narrowing in just the slightest bit. "I talked to him earlier and he didn't mention anything."

"Well he mentioned it outside a little while ago. I think he was waiting for you to come outside," Brody responded, his eyes becoming hard at the accusation underlying Finn's voice. "But anyways the guys were wondering if you'd come outside too Rachel. We all really do wanna hang out with you."

"Okay," she said looking to Finn once before answering again reluctantly, "Yeah we'll go outside. Right Finn?"

The taller man looked at her and gave her a half smile trying to mask the suspicion he felt about Brody's intrusion, "Sure Rach."

As they followed Brody out to the back Rachel passed by in front of Finn, squeezing his arm quickly (a silent apology) before releasing it and immediately talking to Joe, who had come up to her right away once they were outside. Finn was pissed and disappointed that Brody (of all people too!) had come in and interrupted his and Rachel's moment. It had to have been on purpose, Finn thought, and though he wanted to just stay and finish what he and Rachel had been in the middle of he knew it was impossible. They weren't alone at the house here and the moment had been ruined.

"Sup dude," Finn said to Matt as he sat next to him in a lawn chair near the pool. "You needed to talk to me about something?"

Matt, who had been laying back in his own chair, opened his eyes surprised and looked over to see Finn there. "Huh?"

"Brody told me you needed to talk to me about something."

"No. No, that's not what I said," Matt replied his brow scrunched up in confusion. "I said I needed to talk to Jake."

"You needed to talk to Jake," Finn stated, his jaw set hard. He looked over to where Brody was now, laughing with Rachel, Joe, and Sebastian. "Of course."

He watched them for a moment Rachel talking excitedly about something, arms making gestures and her face taken over by a bright smile. The others listened as she spoke but Finn was focusing on Brody, whose arms were crossed and a grin on his face. He must of sensed Finn's stare because he looked over at him straight in the eye. Finn's mouth dropped and his fists clenched as he watched what Brody did a second later.  
The asshole had the nerve to smirk and wink at him.

* * *

**A/N: Sorry all for the delay on the story! Very busy couple of weeks and I was trying to figure out the direction I wanted this to go... So this is it! Yay! Reviews welcome as always! **


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: Do not own any of the characters from Glee, this is simply for fun!**

* * *

"I can't even believe that guy," Finn said angrily, brushing his teeth in the bathroom of his and Sam's room. He was still so steamed even hours later after the incident. So here he was now, pacing back and forth. "I mean, seriously dude, you should have been there. We make eye contact from across the yard and he stands there next to Rachel and winks at me. Fucking winks."

"Are you sure that's what happened?" Sam asked from his position on his bed, trying to be the voice of reason. "I mean how do you know it wasn't just his contacts bothering him?"

Finn turned to look at him in disbelief pausing mid-scrub, "Contacts? Really?"

"Yeah it could be! Mine get really dry sometimes and it totally sucks."

"You didn't see him though man," Finn urged with a shake of his head, not noticing the toothpaste dripping from the side of his mouth. "He straight up lied to me just to ruin the moment Rachel and I had. And he knew it too. I could tell on his face."

"Okay, I believe you dude, but that's how this works," Sam told him apologetically, laying back. "You gonna go run and tell Rachel?"

"Of course not," scoffed Finn, finally looking away and moving to the sink to spit, wiping the toothpaste off with the back of his hand.

"Alright good. I was gonna say that'll just make you a snitch. And nobody likes that."

"Yeah, well, my idea is just to play it cool. You know?" Finn said as he crawled into his own bed. "There's something about him that's off."

"I thought you said he seemed like a cool guy?" Sam asked in confusion. "Brody seems decent to me. Why not try giving him a chance to redeem himself?"

"Whatever man," Finn responded, rolling onto his side and deliberately ending the conversation.

Redeem himself my ass, Finn thought.

The next day Finn laid low and made it seem as if nothing had happened. Interviews were today so for the most part everything would be low key while everyone took their turns.

Currently he was waiting behind Jesse who was going on and on about himself.  
"So how do you think your connection with Rachel has progressed over the week?" asked the blonde producer.

"Oh I can definitely say that our connection has a very strong base due to the years of performing we've both had," Jesse proclaimed easily.

"You have no worries about the other men then?" the woman asked once again, giving Jesse a look of disbelief.

"Well seriously who's my competition? I'm practically the epitome of perfection," he replied back smugly. "This house is pretty much filled with dim wits. I think I stand a good chance."

Finn rolled his eyes at what he was hearing. Jesse was, if anything, the most annoying, arrogant ass he had ever met. Right behind Brody, Jesse was the one guy Finn wouldn't mind seeing go home either.

"Finn it's your turn!"

He sat down in the chair and waited until the camera started to roll. Finn really wasn't good with words so having to do interviews totally sucked.

"So Finn we saw that almost kiss with Rachel the other day," the producer began slyly, "any comment on that?"

Blushing, he smiled slightly at the memory, "Other than the fact that I wish it would have happened... No there isn't much to say."

"Does anyone know about it?"

"Nope," Finn said quickly. "I told Sam we had a moment, but I mean it's not something I want to highlight just yet."After a second of thought he added in a low voice, "It's something I definitely want to happen though." The woman, who he now remembered to be named Terri, smiled sweetly at him and his confession.

"So switching gears now," Terri said, looking at her clipboard. "Any enemies in the group?"

"Well..." Finn trailed off, debating on what he should say. These interviews were important to tell the truth in (at least according to Kurt) because everyone would see it anyway and once he thought about it there was really nothing he could lose. "There may be a few."

Intrigued, Terri pressed the issue, "Do tell."

So he recounted his story with Brody until his interview time was up. On his way out to the main room the man in which Finn had just been talking about passed by.

"Hey Finn," Brody greeted casually, "How's it going?"

"Just fine, dude," Finn answered and, after looking around and behind himself, with a whisper he took a chance. "You know we don't have to do this in private, right?"

"Do what?" the other man asked, his brow scrunched in confusion.

"This," Finn responded harshly. Indicating with his hand between the two of them he added. "C'mon man, don't lie to me to my face. I know what you did."

Looking at him doubtfully, Brody denied the claim. "I have no idea what you're talking about man."

With narrowed eyes Finn looked for a sign to see if he was lying. He had to admit the guy seemed to be telling the truth since he wasn't even flinching. However, Finn didn't rule out the fact that he could just be a really good actor.

"Whatever, man. Forget I said anything."

Shrugging off the incident with a nod of his head Brody spoke up again, "Okay well I guess I'll see you later then. I gotta go do my interview." And with that he was gone.

"I see you talked with him," a voice said making Finn jump from surprise. Looking to his right he finds Sam, arms crossed and walking his way.

"Hmm yeah," Finn answered with a raise of his eyebrows. "He seemed totally normal though. Like nothing changed."

"Well he can't give away all of his secrets," Sam pointed out.

"We'll see then how long the act will go on," Finn replied. Shaking his thoughts out he went in the direction of the kitchen only to be stopped by the sound of yelling coming from outside.

The camera crew was already on their way through the doors and Finn followed quickly after. Recognizing as he got closer that he heard not only a male's voice, but also a woman's voice, Finn realized that Rachel was here again. And she was obviously not happy.

A crowd had gathered around outside, made up of those who had already been out there and the other men coming out of the house to see the commotion.

"How dare you!" Rachel screamed pointing an accusing finger at someone who, at the moment, Finn could not see due to the cameras and the crew in the way.

He could easily see Rachel though, beautiful as ever in a white tank top with black polka dots on it and blue jean shorts with a sparkly black belt. However she was visibly upset and it crushed him to see her like this.

"Look Rachel I didn't mean to say that at all. It was a mistake!" the voice which he now recognized as Hunter's shouted back.

"You still said it," she told him angrily, tears now present upon her face. "I heard what you told Dave and there is nothing I want to hear from you now."

"Rachel, wait I-".

"No, I don't want excuses or whatever. Just," she took in a deep breath and looked over, now noticing the crowd that had gathered around. "Just drop it. I thought I was doing you a favor by coming over here since I know we don't get much time to talk, but after this, I don't even think I should be here today."

Finn watched on as Rachel stormed off leaving behind a shocked Hunter and part of the crowd confused as to what went down. He had to admit part of him was really, really curious about what Hunter said but the other part of him, the one that seemed to be more dominate at the moment, wanted to make sure Rachel was okay. She was walking off with tears staining her face and her head down; she looked absolutely crushed and it was a sight that Finn never wanted to see again.

He started to make his way over in the direction she was going but couldn't quite catch up to stop her because of everyone else that was around. It may have seemed like Finn was going to use her temporary state of vulnerability to his advantage, but in all honesty he was generally concerned for her. He wanted Rachel to know he was there for her if she needed anything.

Stopping a few feet away from where Rachel was at talking with Will, Finn heard what seemed to be the end of a quick conversation they were having. "... I don't want to wait till tomorrow, Will," Rachel was saying frustrated.

"Are you one hundred percent sure though Rachel?" Will asked doubtfully, putting his hand on her shoulder in an attempt to show support for her right now. "Once you do it, it's done. No going back."

"Look, I'm so infuriated right now Will and I know it might seem like I'm making a rash decision, but I can assure you I am going into this with so much clarity right now," Rachel answered with a simple yet firm nod of her head. "We are doing it tonight."

Will looked at her with sympathy in his eyes and gave a small nod in agreement. "Okay, that's fine. I can arrange it. You'll probably have to be back and ready within a few hours so if I were you I'd head back now and get prepped."

"Thanks Will," Rachel said with a sigh like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. The two started to walk off in opposite directions, Rachel coming back towards where Finn, who had been somewhat hidden behind a very tall bush, was standing while Will walked the other way.

After a second though Will called to Rachel once again, though he stayed where he was at. "Hey Rachel!" She turned to look at the older, curly haired man. "I'm sorry for what happened. I think you're doing the right thing though."

Rachel gave a small smile in return and started back on her trek to the car that would take her back to where she was staying. And once he saw she was alone Finn went to go check on the girl that was slowly but surely taking a hold on his heart.

* * *

She felt his presence behind her before she even heard his voice speak up. Rachel was trying to make a quick escape after the fiasco that went down mere minutes ago but she should have known her attempt to leave would be useless. Someone was bound to try to comfort her and while she was happy to know he cared so much Rachel really wasn't in the mood to speak with anyone. That's why she was not turning around. And why she was now starting to speed walk.

"Rachel, hey are you alright?"

Damn Finn and his kindness, she thought. He would be the one to come check on her when she probably looks absolutely atrocious. Rachel's steps faltered though she kept walking and kept silent, hoping against all odds that Finn would get the message that she didn't want to talk and give up on the matter.

"Rach, c'mon. You know I'm here for you right?" Finn pressed on, soon coming right next to her side due to his long legs being able to stride a lot further than her legs ever could. She kept her head down and wiped her eyes knowing all too well that the make-up she had put on before had most likely smeared from her crying.

To be fair she had come over to try to build connections with some of the men who she hadn't seen too much of because she felt like she owed them that much. However, when Rachel had gotten to the guys house she was coming around the corner into the backyard when she heard Hunter talking to Dave. At first she had thought it was nothing but silly banter. Guys being guys and that sort of thing. But as she listened more intently Rachel realized they had been talking about her as well as her family. Hunter was saying things that made Rachel so furious that she couldn't contain it within her; knowing that a man who claimed he was here to try to win her heart was saying these awful, horrible things caused her to crack. So she had, in short, blown up on him. Rachel went off on him not noticing the crowd around her till the end of her speech, and though it was quite embarrassing she knew she had to defend her family. She had been so mad though that tears had started to form and run down her face before she could get control or stop them.

So yes, Rachel was positive that she looked like a mess at the moment and really didn't want Finn to see it. Yet he was persistent and she couldn't deny that she didn't enjoy his attention. Finally he had caught up to her and laid a hand on her shoulder while simultaneously stepping in front of her.

"Rachel, please stop for a minute and talk to me," Finn said softly, squeezing her shoulder as a sign that she could trust him. She had stopped walking but Rachel kept her face firmly staring at the ground. Finn waited a moment when he had an idea.

Grabbing Rachel's hand, Finn didn't even stop to ask her if she cared, he led her over to a wooden bench that was placed along a row of flowers lining the walkway. Sitting down first and then patting the space next to him, Finn watched as Rachel sat down with him, but made no attempt to talk.

He didn't care though. Finn was getting to hold her hand, which was still firmly placed in his, and he simply tried showing her support. He had no idea what happened with Hunter but until she was ready to speak he would stay with her.

After a few moments of silence she began to throw subtle glances Finn's way, hoping he didn't notice. Rachel watched out of the corner of her eye as he sat with her on the bench. He didn't seem to be looking at anything in particular, just watching as a bird here or a bug there would pass by. It was rather cute and caused a small smile to grace her lips.

"So are you going to sit here with me all day?" Rachel teased, watching as a slow smile spread across Finn's face and he nodded his head, still looking straight ahead.  
"If necessary, then yes. I will," he confirmed, giving her hand a squeeze and lacing their fingers together.

Sniffling Rachel shook her head, laughing lightly, "You are something else, Finn Hudson. I don't know any other man that would sit here willingly with a girl crying her eyes out."

"Well I wouldn't do it for just anybody you know," Finn told her quietly, using his hand to bring her face up to look at him. "You just happen to be the exception."

"Thank you, Finn. It's nice to know not everyone is deplorable or dishonorable," Rachel whispered back, looking into his eyes and seeing nothing but truth. Suddenly remembering her current state of mess she quickly pulled back and looked away, not having realized how close they had gravitated towards each other.

Not liking how she had pulled away from him and placed her face in her hands, Finn furrowed his brow asking, "What? What's wrong?"

"It's nothing really," Rachel said, her words muffled, "I just look like a mess right now, and I really don't want you to see it."

Laughing Finn responded, "Rach, I can assure that if that's what you look like as a mess, you have nothing to worry about."

"Please you're just saying that," she sniffled. "Nobody ever has a cute crying face. It's a fact. And I'm positive I have make-up all over my face so that makes it worse."

"Not true, you always have a cute face. But I'll let you think what you want," Finn decided. "My mom told me to never disagree with a woman."

"You have a very smart mother then," Rachel said giggling softly, taking her hands off her face but looking ahead now. Her giggles subsided and Finn watched as a thoughtful yet sad face came upon her.

"Penny for your thoughts?" He asked nudging her shoulder lightly.

Taking in a deep breath and letting it out slowly she said, "It's nothing really I guess." She paused looking towards her hands which she was clutching together. "I miss my dads, that's all."

Raising his eyebrows at that Finn asked incredulously, "Dads?" She looked over to him as he spoke again. "As in plural, you mean?"

Rachel set him with a hard stare as she picked up on the shock evident in his voice.

"Yes, plural. I have two gay dads. Why?"

"I didn't know that," he said simply, still slightly surprised.

"Is there a problem with that, Finn?" Rachel asked defiantly, crossing her arms across her chest as she turned her body more towards him to fix a glare on him. "Because if I have to hear the same crap from you like I had heard from Hunter before..."

He cut her off before she could go on further. "Woah, woah, woah! No that's not what I was gonna say at all." At this point Finn had his hands up in front of him in defense.

Releasing out a breath she didn't know she had been holding Rachel relaxed slightly. "Okay, good. Sorry. I didn't mean to jump to conclusions."

"It's cool," Finn replied putting his hands down, figuring he was in the clear. "For the record I have a gay step brother, you know, the one I was telling you about yesterday. The one that works at Vogue."

Recognition flashed across Rachel's face at that, "Oh! That's right you did mention something about that."

"Yeah, I'll be honest it was a little weird at first, his lifestyle and all, but he's really not bad," Finn said fondly, thinking back on his times with Kurt. "He had a crush on me too, before our parents got together, so that was kinda awkward."

Laughing Rachel nodded, "I'd imagine that would be."

"It's all good now though," he continued on, contemplating how to ask the next question without seeming nosy. Deciding to go straight for it, Finn asked quietly, "So what happened with Hunter today exactly?"

Sighing Rachel leaned back against the bench, once again feeling the frustrated tears form in her eyes. "Oh Finn... How do I even explain?"

"It's okay if you don't want to tell me," Finn assured her. "I don't want to be that pushy, nosy guy that everyone hates or anything. I just want to know, most importantly, if you're okay."

Smiling at his words Rachel brushed a loose hair behind her ear, "Thank you Finn. I just- I guess, all I can say is that I've had a hard time all my life growing up with two gay dads. You know, not everyone is as accepting of it, but I was sure that with the way the world is now that maybe it wouldn't be such a big deal anymore." She was silent for a moment deep in thought when she said, "I'm not ashamed of them, truly. It's just, I've gotten so defensive about it because what else are you going to do? Of course, you want to stand up for your family. So when I overheard Hunter today I just snapped back into that protective mode again."

"I'm really sorry Rachel," Finn said feeling apologetic for her and wanting to beat the crap out of Hunter, especially when he saw a tear fall slowly down her cheek once again.

"It's not your fault," Rachel sighed angrily, "You and I can do nothing to change how others think. But I don't want to see Hunter anymore. Or anyone else that has a problem with my family."

"I completely understand," he told Rachel as he watched her stand up and brush off her shorts. His eyes roamed over her legs for a moment, admiring her toned and tanned legs. Finn looked away quickly once she turned her attention to him again.

"You're a good guy Finn," Rachel said sincerely, watching as his lop-sided grin appeared. "I'll see you later tonight okay?"

With that Rachel started to walk off back in the direction of the car taking her back to her house. He was confused for a second by what she meant when he quickly went into action and started to go after her again.

"Wait, what? Later tonight?" He asked Rachel, wanting to know what she meant. She had stopped once again when Finn was next to her and gave him a small grimace.

"I talked to Will about what happened and, well..." She sighed, mostly to herself. "Some people just need to go already. I'm not waiting." With that she nodded her head determinedly and Finn was surprised by how much more he found her attractive when he saw this side of her.

It didn't matter much that her make-up had been smeared like she had guessed correctly before. Confidence was a major turn on.

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**A/N: Please enjoy this chapter and review, review, review! Thanks to those who have left comments... I love to hear from you!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: Do not own any of the characters from Glee, this is simply for fun!**

* * *

"You can do this. You are Rachel Barbra Berry and you can do this."

Pacing back and forth across the wood floor in the hallway of the mansion Rachel had been repeating this mantra to herself for the last ten minutes. Unfortunately as much as she said these words she couldn't quite get herself to believe them. Originally she had believed she was ready for the confrontation she was sure was going to be coming but the more time she had to herself fear was slowly taking over her mind.

Adjusting her dress again she stopped and looked in the mirror to see her reflection. She looked perfect. Rachel had on a short high-waist, pleat embellished dress that was a dark red and had paired it with black heels. She had styled her hair in sexy beach waves and her makeup was back to tip top shape after the afternoon's crying fiasco.

In short although she had looked like a hot mess earlier today and she was now dressed to impress. And Rachel was going to make sure the guys she was sending home knew exactly what they were going to be missing.

Unfortunately for Rachel the confidence she had in her appearance had yet to apply to the situation. She pulled at her dress yet again out of nervous habit and paced some more stopping after a while and getting out her phone from her clutch. She dialed the one person she really hoped would be able to give her good advice. However luck didn't seem to be on her side as someone else picked up.

"Sup Princess?" Puck said as he answered the phone.

Looking at her phone to see if she had dialed correctly, and seeing that she had, Rachel shook her head. "Hello Noah. Can I ask why you're answering Santana's phone for her? I really need to speak with her so if you could just..."

"Sorry Berry. San's not in right now. She and Britt went out for drinks apparently and she forgot her phone," Puck told her easily. "Me and Q are at your place."

"Well where's Blaine?" she asked curiously. "Why aren't you all hanging out together?"

"Blaine has some family dinner with his brother, but that's not the point. What's with the call?" Puck asked now annoyed. "Quinn and I were just starting to get down and dirty when you called."

"Noah! You are in mine and Santana's place. You cannot just engage in sexual activities anywhere you like!" Rachel shrieked. "In fact get out right now. Right now! Gosh I can't believe you two."

"Okay you're more on edge than usual Berry. What's the deal?" He asked unaffected by her words and obviously not going to leave just because she said to.

"Does it even matter to you? Can you just- just put Quinn on the phone? I really need her advice," Rachel said exasperated running her fingers through her hair.

"No can do. Doorbell just rang and she went to get it. She's talking to some crazy old hag at the door trying to convince her that aliens are not coming to take over New York just because her tv blacked out on her lame soap opera," he replied flatly. "I think this lady needs to be checked into some psych ward."

Rachel smiled at the image of the elderly woman who lived next door to her coming over in her purple robe and blue bunny slippers. "Noah give Mrs. Harding a break. She just went on some new medication and she's having trouble adjusting."

"Doesn't mean anything Rach," he scoffed rolling his eyes. "She's still bat shit crazy."

Giggling softly Rachel could just imagine Noah's state of annoyance now. "Oh how I've missed your sympathy Noah," she said sarcastically knowing he would understand her teasing.

"Now what's your deal Berry? Have all those guys finally found out you're crazy?" He asked jokingly.

Taking offense to that, especially since Rachel's fear was based around that, she was reminded exactly why she had called in the first place. "That's not something to joke about Noah," she warned him hurt. "This situation isn't funny and I don't appreciate your rude comments."

"Oh come on Rachel you know I was joking. We all know how you get though," he said apologetically. Sighing he continued, "Seriously what happened?"

"Promise you won't laugh?"

"Yeah, yeah promise," he said his annoyance spiking. "Go on."

Taking in a deep breath she confessed. "Okay look I may have been involved in a bit of a heated argument this afternoon and it may have gotten out of hand just a bit."

Knowing what she meant Puck burst out laughing hysterically. "You promised not to laugh Noah!" Rachel huffed frustrated.

Roars of laughter could still be heard and she was starting to get really irritated as she listened. "Shit Berry I can't believe you! You weren't even at that place for more than two weeks and you've already thrown a diva tantrum!" Laughing still he continued on, "I should thank you though. I won fifty bucks cause of you."

"Excuse me?" Rachel asked offended. She really hated her friends sometimes. "Are you telling me you placed a bet on how long I could go before I got angry?"

"Well duh," he replied as if it wasn't already obvious. "Had to keep it interesting. Blaine thought you'd be able to hold out longer than that but I mean, c'mon Berry, it's you we were talking about."

Hearing his laughter again only annoyed her more and she was just about fed up with the conversation. "Look Noah I didn't call to be made fun of and I don't appreciate your amusement at my dilemma. So if you don't mind I guess I'll just be hanging up."

"Aw Rachel come on," Puck said trying to sober up his laughter as best as he could. "Look I'm sorry. I'll try again." After a moment of silence he asked, "what's wrong? Why did you throw a classic Rachel Berry fit?"

Rolling her eyes but hoping against all hope that'd he be some sort of help Rachel tried again. She explained what she had overheard and why she got upset and as she rambled on she felt that familiar anger and hurt bubbling up deep inside of her once again.

"... And you know Noah I'm just hurt. To think that someone who claimed to be here for me could say such awful things about my family? I just lost it in that moment."

Puck sighed after she was done finally telling him what had happened. Dating Quinn, who had been long time friends with Rachel, he had gotten the full back story into how Rachel had had to deal with this sort of thing her whole life. He felt bad for her and though Rachel does annoy the hell out of him sometimes he truly cares for her. She was in a way his friend after all.

"And what if I've just scared them all away now? I mean what if they think I'm a wreck and I'm just too much to deal with? They could all just walk away right now and I'd be the laughing stock of the show. Do you know how embarrassing that could be?" She was in hysterics now that much Puck could tell. She wasn't crying but the anxiety was definitely there.

So he said what he thought would be best to say. "Rachel don't freak out just yet okay? I don't think any of those things will happen. You wanna know why?"

Taking her sniffle as a yes he went on. "You're a great girl Rachel. Even if you are over dramatic sometimes. Those guys would be crazy to give up someone like you."

"You really think that?" she whispered after a moment, not sure if she should believe him.

"Of course. I mean, I know you hate when I say this cause I'm with Quinn, but you are insanely hot Rach. I'm pretty sure that alone outweighs your crazy," he said lightly, trying his best to ease his friend's nerves. "And you know what? Even if they can't take it? Just tell them to all fuck off. If they are crazy enough to pass over you then who needs them. Fuck 'em all."

Smiling a real genuine smile for the first time in hours now Rachel nodded her head slowly. "Wow Noah. Um, thank you. That," she sighed, "that is exactly the advice I needed. Thank you." She laughed a little at the whole situation. "Who knew Noah Puckerman could be so sweet?"

Rolling his own eyes but smiling to himself nonetheless Puck spoke once again putting on his tough guy exterior, especially since Quinn was just coming back into the room. "Yeah whatever Berry. 'Kay I gotta go. My lady is back and me and her are going to get back to business," he said suggestively knowing full well he would get a shriek in return. Sure enough Rachel didn't disappoint. "Good luck the rest of the time and remember just fuck them." With that the line went dead.

Shaking her head at her friend's antics Rachel smiled and looked at herself once again in the mirror. She liked Noah's saying better than the one she had been previously saying (though she would never admit it because she was not one to be so vulgar). Just fuck them all, she thought.

"Rachel," Emma called to her walking over to her with a clipboard in hand. "We're just about ready to start filming the ceremony any minute now. I just thought you should know."

"Thanks Emma," Rachel said as she got in place to wait for her cue. She started hearing the familiar noises of footsteps come into the room down the hall and, though she felt herself getting nervous again, she reminded herself of Puck's words.

A few minutes later she heard the beginnings of Will's speech for the ceremony and knew filming had started. Will was saying something along the lines of how well this week has gone and how he knows that Rachel appreciates everyone being here.

"... She really is serious about falling in love here," he said and Rachel scoffed lightly to herself and rolled her eyes. If anything she felt the exact opposite about being here.

It's not that she didn't believe in or want love in her life she just didn't think it was reasonable (or actually possible) to love someone in such a short amount of time. This ultimately was just a way to get her back into dating.

"And so without further ado," Will finished. "Here's Miss Rachel Berry."

Taking a deep breath and releasing it she walked into the room, making sure to get to her mark, and then finally looking up to meet the eyes of all the men. She met some friendly smiles and nervous stares and in that she found her voice return.

"Hi guys," she began calmly, smiling softly. "I just want to begin tonight by saying that for this being the first real week I had with you all, it was really great. I know we had our bumps along the way," she continued with a raise of her eyebrows, "but I think it's good. It's shown me that I really do need to get to know all of you a lot more and you need to know me too."

Looking over to Will and seeing his nod of approval she then looked in the general direction of where Hunter was standing. She couldn't decipher his expression and it made her worried once again. "So with that, I know this wasn't supposed to happen today, but seeing as what happened this afternoon I thought it'd be best to move it up. And to make it real clear," she said firmly. "You say anything hurtful about me and, more importantly, my family? You're gone. I'm sorry but that's the way it's going to be."

Picking up a star from next to her she spoke with a lighter tone. "So getting back down to business," Rachel said, looking over the group she noticed a pair of piercing blue eyes that caught her eye and smiled.

"Brody," she said watching as his smile grew in size as he came up to her. (She failed to notice the odd expression that came over a certain amber-eyed man.)

"You look hot tonight Rachel," he commented to her as she pinned the star to his grey suit jacket, causing her to blush. Her response was a shy grin and before he turned to walk back he sent her a wink. She again failed to see, as he was walking back, the hint of a smug look that graced Brody's features as he went to his spot.

Picking up the next star she called the next name confidently. "Finn," she announced. As she looked at him his eyes grew bright in (what seemed to be) surprise and his always adorable crooked smile graced his face.

She placed the star onto his black suit jacket noticing this time that he had gone for a bright green tie. She subconsciously wondered if Finn's brother had made any sort of comment to him about it, seeing as he had a say in all of Finn's wardrobe choices. Rachel looked up once she was done to see him staring at her with a look that made her feel something she couldn't quite identify at the moment. Before she had a chance to figure it out though he was already moving back to his place.

So the rest of the ceremony went on as usual until there was only one star left. And there were three men left to pick from.

"Gentlemen," Will said solemnly. "This is the final chance of the night. For those of you who don't receive one you will have to leave immediately after saying your goodbyes."

After a moment's pause Rachel looked back to the men and without hesitation announced the name. "Matt."

The look of relief that overcame Matt's face was almost comical and Rachel gave a small giggle as he came up to her whispering overdramatically, "Are you trying to give me a heart attack?"

"Well I have to keep you on your toes somehow right?" she joked back giving him a dazzling smile. And as he walked back the other two guys, Hunter and Dave, were already chatting with the others and getting ready to leave.

Rachel watched on as they finished and when they started walking up to her there was a second of panic that washed through her. She was sure this was the moment everything would blow up in her face. She wanted to run but she knew she had to stand her ground. Fortunately she had prepared for the worse.

When Hunter finally stood in front of her his face was still unemotional but as she looked closer she thought she recognized a twinkle of remorse somewhere in his eyes. She stood stock still waiting for him to make the first move; waiting for him to say the first thing.

"Look Rachel," Hunter started his voice low. "I just wanted to say I'm sorry and good luck to you."

Fully prepared to fire back at him Rachel was a bit confused as the words "I'm sorry" left his mouth. "Excuse me?" she asked gently.

"I'm sorry... For what I said. I realize that it was a horrible thing to do and I can't take it back. Good luck with the rest of them." He gave her a simple nod and left. She was still in utter confusion as Dave spoke with her muttering his own apologies and saying goodbye. She almost felt bad because though he was leaving Rachel really hadn't paid too much attention to him. If he noticed he didn't say a word.

She just didn't get why this guy who had been arguing heatedly with her this afternoon had suddenly seemed so... remorseful? A light tap on the should brought her out of her stupor and Rachel looked to see that Jake had come up to her offering a glass of champagne. She took it gratefully and smiled as she turned to the rest of the men, thanking them for bearing with her.

The rest of the night was spent on the couches in one of the living rooms hanging out with all the men and drinking away. Rachel had long since abandoned her black heels and she was currently squished in between Sam and Sebastian laughing loudly at a story Ryder was telling them. It was long past when she should of left and as Ryder finished his story Rachel was yawning, completely worn out from the whole day.

She finished the last of her champagne and afterwards announced it was time for her to leave. Immediately there was protest from the guys who were trying to coax her to stay just a little bit longer. She really had been having a good time relaxing with them but she insisted she had to leave.

So one by one each of the guys said goodnight to her, leaving the room afterwards to head upstairs to their own rooms. Soon enough it was just Rachel and Finn, the last to say goodnight.

She gave him a shy smile unsure of what to do but he covered that for her has he quickly gathered her up in his arms. His arms wrapped around her waist and though she was surprised at first Rachel melted into his embrace easily slipping her arms around his neck. No words passed between them as they held each other but neither one really cared. They were content.

Pulling back moments later Rachel looked up at Finn who was giving her a small grin and still not releasing his hold around her waist. "So how did it go with Hunter?" he asked casually.

With a raise of her eyebrows she gave a nod as she thought back on it. "To be honest it actually was a lot more civilized of a conversation than I anticipated."

"Good. I mean, um, that- that's awesome. I'm happy to hear that," Finn stuttered with an edge to his voice which she immediately picked up on.

"Why?" she asked suspiciously her eyes narrowing. When he looked away and cleared his throat nervously she tried again. "What happened Finn?"

"Nothing!" he answered quickly. "I mean, nothing bad. I- I tried my best to handle it before anything happened. I mean-."

"Finn you aren't making any sense," she said worriedly. She didn't want to think something bad happened, but Rachel couldn't help the feelings his words were eliciting. "What do you mean nothing 'bad' happened?"

Shaking his head in an attempt to unscramble the words in his head he sighed frustrated. "Sorry, I'm not good with words. Let me try again," he said sheepishly. "Nothing bad happened at all. What I meant to say was I talked to Hunter today after you left. I caught up with him and explained how upset you were."

At the wary look on her face he continued, "I told him, well more like warned him, that he needed to do his best to make it up to you. And that before he left he owed it to you to apologize."

"You did that?" she asked eyes wide and surprised.

"Well yeah, it's just, I- I know you probably could have handled it on your own like you did today, which was really hot by the way, and I didn't mean to seem like some meat head who doesn't think you can stand up for yourself, but-."

He was rambling. He was nervous and he was rambling and he couldn't seem to stop the word vomit that kept coming out. Rachel smiled at him disbelievingly cutting him off before he could embarrass himself.

"Finn, it's okay. It's fine."

"Are you sure? Cause I really didn't mean to overstep or anything I just-"

Smiling wider she snaked her arms around his torso this time leaning her head on his chest. "I can assure you Finn that what you did? I appreciate so, so much. You have no idea."

His own smile formed as he tightened his arms around her waist once again as they embraced. "It was my pleasure."

Looking up from her position in his arms Rachel couldn't help but admire his handsomeness that seemed to come so effortlessly to him. She just couldn't quite figure out what it was that was his overall best feature.

His freckles were definitely cute and the way his brown hair always seemed so messy yet styled at the same time was quite attractive. She just wanted to run her fingers through it. His dimples that came out whenever he gave her that heartbreaking smile were most definitely another thing that she liked very much. But looking at him close up now it had to be his eyes that put him over the top.

The way his amber eyes smoldered when he looked at her and seemed to be endless, she felt like she could get lost in his gaze forever. Watching the way they danced with amusement or seemed to darken with desire was quite fascinating and in that moment she noticed that the desire in his eyes was definitely there. And boy could she not tear her gaze away as she subconsciously bit her bottom lip. Of course then she also looked down at his lips which were slightly parted and ever so slowly coming in to close the distance.

And, yeah, maybe those lips were actually her favorite thing.

"Ms. Berry," a voice awkwardly called out causing both Finn and Rachel to come to terms with their surroundings and stopping them inches away from each other.

Sighing heavily (and frustratedly) Rachel looked to see who it was but she didn't bother to step out of Finn's arms. "Hello Howard, what can I do for you?"

"Sorry to bother you but Ms. Sylvester is insisting that I take you home now. She was the one left to oversee the crew pack up its equipment properly and since it's finally done she 'doesn't want to be around these mouth-breathing yahoos anymore'," he stated with air quotes. "She told me to tell you to hurry up, but that's putting what she said lightly."

Giving him a reassuring smile she nodded, "Okay Howard. I'm right behind you."

She felt the pair of strong arms that were around her waist tighten as she turned back to once again look at Finn. She really didn't want to leave now but seeing as Howard seemed to be nervous as hell (which she understood completely knowing he wanted to avoid the wrath of Sue Sylvester) she knew she had to go.

"It looks like I have to go," she sighed dejectedly.

"You can't just stay for a few minutes longer?" He suggested hopefully but his answer came in the form of a car horn beeping insistently out front.

"Apparently not," she giggled amusedly, knowing without a doubt that had to be a certain scary blond woman and not Howard. "I'm sorry, but I'll see you tomorrow."

Rolling his eyes teasingly he released his hold on her and nudged her playfully. "I guess that will have to do," he joked.

"Good to know," Rachel smiled grateful for his humor and understanding. "Now I really should go. Thanks again Finn."

She was turning on her heel already intending to rush out right away so Sue would stop honking and Howard wouldn't get in too much trouble but a hand stopped her before she could make her escape.

"You're going to leave without me saying a proper goodbye in response?" Finn gasped in mock dramatics.

"I guess that's not too polite of me is it?" she laughed.

"Definitely not," he replied amused as he looked down at her. And ever so quickly he leaned down before Rachel could even comprehend what he was doing.

Giving her a quick kiss on the cheek Rachel's cheeks flushed as Finn pulled back smirking down at her, satisfied he had caught her off guard.

"That. Will have to do as a proper goodbye," he said giving her his famous crooked grin. "Good night Rachel."

"Good night Finn," she responded still in shock and knowing her face was probably totally pink. Turning to go she walked down the hall processing what had just happened.

Finn had completely surprised her and to say she didn't like it would be absolutely crazy. She touched her cheek where his lips had been and she swore she could feel it tingling. Before turning the corner to go out front she looked over her shoulder one last time at the room she had just been.

There was Finn who was now just leaving to head upstairs with his back turned to her when she laughed to herself. He was literally pumping his fist in the air.

He didn't hear her laugh, thank goodness (she didn't want to embarrass him after all) but his action was enough to keep a smile on her face the whole way home.

* * *

**A/N: So I want to apologize for this being extremely late. I had intended to post a lot sooner but there was some technical difficulties and basically this whole chapter got deleted and I had to rewrite it all over again! I think it turned out better than the previous one luckily! Anyways so sorry for the wait and I will try to be better about updating.. As always please REVIEW! Thanks all! **


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: As you all know our family, the Glee family, lost one of our brightest stars about a month ago. I personally, and I'm assuming like many of you, was in complete shock and overcome with sadness**** when the news broke. I was actually on a family vacation when it happened and I learned of Cory's death by a text I received from a friend of mine. I had initially thought it was all a hoax but when it was confirmed and I saw it on the news my heart was shattered. And I truly feel like a part of me died that day as well.**

**Over the last month I have slowly come to terms with Cory's death, and while it may seem stupid to some to be so heartbroken over the loss of a person I never knew personally, I don't care. Cory was truly an inspiration to me, as both Finn Hudson and himself. I admired Cory's outlook on life and the way that he was always so kind to everyone he met. As Finn I admired the way he put others before himself and, though he failed more times than he really succeeded, the way he never stopped believing.**

**I won't lie. I've cried multiple times ever since his death. The first few days were the hardest, hell that first week and a half was tough, but I've realized now that I can't cry over it anymore. Cory wouldn't want that. **

**So instead of tears, from now on when I remember Cory it'll be with a smile. (Watching some of the old interviews he did I find it impossible not to laugh at his antics.) I'll remember his kindness, his determination, his humor... most likely everything about him. But most importantly I'll remember the love he had for Lea Michele. My thoughts and prayers have been with her these last few weeks and I will continue to support her no matter what. She is so strong and through her actions and beautiful words about Cory it has helped me heal as well because if she can go on I know I can too. **

**While I will continue to watch Glee I know that without Cory and Finn it will never be the same and that it will take time to get use to this new reality. And even though Finchel won't get the happy ending that I and so many others hoped for on Glee I know that here is the place where they can. So I plan to continue writing Finchel stories because in my mind Finchel, Finn, and most importantly Cory is Forever. **

**On a final note I want to say: Rest in Peace Cory Monteith. I will miss you forever and will never forget the light that you brought into mine and so many others lives. Heaven sure gained one perfect angel. I love you Cory, you tall, awkward Canadian.**

**and now... Disclaimer: Do not own any of the characters from Glee, this is simply for fun!**

* * *

"So how excited are you for this one-on-one date today Rachel?" Terri asked sitting across from the brunette with a sly smile on her face.

Blushing Rachel turned to the camera and answered, "I am so excited for today's one-on-one date. While I am still a bit sad from last night's ceremony seeing as how I had to send Joe and Sebastian home I can honestly say that I really am looking forward to the date with Finn today. "

It was two weeks after the incident with Hunter and Rachel was finally getting a date with Finn. The first one-on-one date had gone to Jesse last week upon a request made by the producers and while he wouldn't have been her first choice she ended up having a really great time with him. However other than the exchange of hellos and 'how are you' on the group date she barely talked to Finn at all. Something in her warmed when she thought about how she'd get the time to be with him today, just the two of them.

"So what are the plans for today?" Terri asked bringing Rachel out of her thoughts.

"Well today Finn and I are going to get to explore the downtown area of LA and hopefully we'll find some things to entertain us on the way," she replied simply. "Finn seems to me like someone who would be able to be happy just spending time together and I know that's something that I want in a relationship, you know? I want someone who could fit into my everyday life."

"That's sweet," Terri replied and as she turned to her side she snapped her fingers and waved her hand. "That's a wrap!"

Letting out a sigh of relief Rachel slumped back in her seat closing her eyes. She was a star and while she loved to be interviewed Rachel didn't really like having to go in depth about her love life. It was ten times worse with the fact that she was simultaneously dating a whole group of men. So unfortunately she had to do this _all_ the time.

"Um, Miss Berry? I'm here to take you to your date today," Howard said quietly causing her eyes to open and look in his direction.

"Great!" She said enthusiastically jumping up from the chair. "Let's go."

* * *

"So you're ready for your date tonight with Rachel?" Emma asked Finn as she sat beside the camera which was focused in on him.

"Yeah, definitely," he answered simply and quickly.

"You need to elaborate further Gigantor," Sue said from the side of the room clearly annoyed. "We don't want your dim witted, one-word answers. You might be simple minded but we're asking you to reach deep down in that pea brain of yours and pull out some sort of intelligent response."

"Sue!" Emma gasped to her co-worker. Turning back to him she looked apologetically at Finn. "Please ignore her comments Finn, but she is right. We need a full answer from you. Tell us how you feel. Tell us what you're looking forward to. Understand?"

Shifting uncomfortably in his seat, Finn nodded. It was really annoying him just how much he had to talk about his feelings on camera. If Mike and Artie ever saw… scratch that _when_ they would see it on television he was sure he was going to get shit for it.

"Great," Emma smiled. "Let's try this again. Are you ready for date with Rachel?"

"I am so ready for this date with Rachel tonight," Finn started as the camera once again started to roll. "I think, from the very moment we had our first conversation, that we just connected so well. I am so ecstatic to get to go on the one-on-one with her today."

"So you weren't jealous that Jesse got the first date?" Emma asked reading from her clipboard.

A tight smile stretched across his face as a feeling of jealousy burned through him at the mention of Jesse St. Jackass. The guy who, for some unknown reason to Finn, had gotten to go on the very first date with Rachel, while he was stuck in the house with the other guys playing poker. Jesse had come home that night after his date with a smug smile as he detailed his evening with Rachel to everyone.

"Of course I would have liked to have gotten the date first," Finn said answering Emma's question. "But I know there are some other good guys here and it's important to her to spend time with everyone."

Emma gave a small smile at that as she signaled that they were done filming and had enough with the interview. They had to talk to him after the date tonight anyway to see how it went.

"Hey Hudson!" Jake called from down the hall. "Rachel's here!"

Finn's heart beat faster at the news. He couldn't wait to be alone with Rachel on their very own date. Just the two of them.

* * *

"Okay, favorite candy? Go."

"Hmm, I'd have to say Sour Patch Kids."

"Really? You'd pick those over anything else?"

"Well I don't really care for the green ones in the pack, but yeah that's like, the best candy ever."

"Interesting. Okay... Favorite movie?"

"Braveheart. What about you?"

"Funny Girl. I could watch that movie about a billion times and never get tired of it. It's a Barbra Streisand classic !"

"I think my brother's mentioned her a few times before. I've never seen that movie though."

"What?" Rachel gasped, stopping mid-step in the middle of the semi-crowded sidewalk looking at Finn incredulously. "You're kidding me right?"

Laughing at her expression Finn shook his head. "Can't say that I am."

"Well then," Rachel huffed before breaking out into a small grin, resuming walking and reaching once again for his hand which she had dropped before. "We'll just have to solve that problem sometime. I can't possibly like a guy whose never seen the greatest movie ever!"

"That's fine with me," Finn agreed a smile gracing his face as well as he intertwined their fingers together. "So what do you want to do next?"

The date had been fantastic so far even if it was really simple. The pair had started by strolling through a nearby park before grabbing ice cream from a shop that sold vegan options so Rachel could eat it too. They had spent the entire time talking and laughing getting to know one another that it really didn't bother them so much that there were cameras or a whole crew following them around.

"Do you mind if we look in a few of the stores around here?" She asked looking up at him. "Then after we can go to dinner. I just really want to check the area out."

"That sounds good," he said pulling her into the first nearby store he saw.

Upon entering they were met with the sights of crazy hats and colorful wigs. A giggle escaped Rachel's mouth as she leaned into his side and poked his chest with a finger.

"This store?" She asked teasingly. "Finn I know you've said before you have a sense of style that your brother doesn't really like but this is on a whole other level. I had no idea you liked to wear wigs and fake mustaches."

Feigning hurt Finn took a step away from her and grabbed a long blue wig and a pink beret from a shelf. Quickly putting it on he turned to her. "I never thought you were one to judge Ms. Berry. I think I look great in this."

"You look fantastic," she replied sarcastically through her laughter. Turning to the shelf beside her Rachel grabbed the first things she saw. A neon orange mustache and a curly purple wig.

"Now what about me?" She asked striking a pose in front of him. "Don't I look fabulous?"

"You look hot babe," he said with a sly grin. "Although the mustache might have to go. I'm not a big fan of girls with facial hair."

"Please. I rock this mustache and you know it," she replied smugly.

"Sure you do," he laughed sending her a wink.

After several minutes of trying on different hats and wigs and mustaches Rachel saw something that caught her eye on a shelf.

"I think," she started to say reaching for a pink tiara on another shelf and replacing the wig and mustache with it, "I like this better than these things."

Finn smiled warmly at her. "I agree completely."

"And I think this," she said grabbing an old-fashioned top hat, "suits you much better too."

Placing the hat on his head and putting his wig back he took her hand and they stood in front of the mirror together.

"I was right," Rachel said after a moment of appraisal. "You look much better in that."

"Not as good as you in that crown. You look cute Rach."

"Thanks," she said blushing at the simple compliment, squeezing his hand.

"So Princess Rachel," he said teasingly nudging her slightly, "what do you say we head to another store and see what else we can find?"

"I think that's a great idea."

The rest of the afternoon was spent rummaging through whatever shops they walked into and trying on all kinds of different things. They laughed at the stupid things that they did and just enjoyed each other's company. Soon enough they were sitting at dinner, after changing out of their casual clothes and into something a little nicer, eating their meals.

"So Finn what's it like being a teacher?" Rachel asked curiously. "How'd you know that's what you wanted to do?"

"Well it's actually really great for the most part," he replied excitedly. "I like working with the kids and they're not too bad for high school students. I guess it helps though that its a private school."

"So they're more behaved?"

"Exactly. It's also nice because it's a bit of a better salary than regular public school teachers," he said honestly. Living in New York wasn't cheap and while he had gotten the cheapest apartment he could find Finn found that it was still hard to make ends meet sometimes.

"What kind of teacher are you then?" She asked. "Science? Math? English?"

"Music," he said with a smile watching as he saw her face lit up at this information.

"No way, really?" She asked excitedly.

He nodded. "Yes ma'am. Actually, I'm technically only the choir teacher at the school but I am involved in a lot of the other arts programs too. I even directed the school musical one year."

"That's so cool!" Rachel beamed. "I had no idea you were so musically adapt. Do you sing at all? Dance?"

"Um, if singing in the shower counts then yes," he admitted sheepishly. "As for dancing that's a definite no. I told you that time on the beach I broke a girl's nose in high school dancing right?"

"Oh!" She said thinking back to their very first conversation. "I think I do remember that actually."

"Yeah that just goes to show how crappy I am. I nearly killed the poor girl," he said shaking his head.

"I'm sure you've gotten better over the years," Rachel responded encouragingly.

"I think that's debatable," Finn said doubtfully.

"Well is there anything else you can do musically?" Rachel asked.

"I can play the drums. I taught myself with a drum set I had when I was a kid and have played ever since," he said proudly. "I can play a few chords here and there on the guitar too but nothing too complex."

"That's amazing Finn," Rachel told him sincerely. "I mean really it's impressive. I can only play the piano but all my life I've mostly focused on singing."

"Well I've heard you sing before Rach and I have to say you are fantastic," Finn told her earnestly.

"You've heard me sing before?" She asked..

"My brother found some of your performances on YouTube before I left to come here," he admitted. "He insisted I hear you sing before I met you. You really did sound great."

"I'm flattered," she said blushing. Sure she was use to getting compliments on her singing all the time but the simple way Finn was doing it had her cheeks flushing and made her feel like a silly teenage girl again. She was almost embarrassed by how affected she was by him.

She looked away from him needing a second to compose herself and taking a sip of the wine in front of her. When she looked back Finn was looking at her intently.

"You look so pretty tonight Rach," he complimented brushing a loose hair out of her face and tucking it behind her ear. She smiled widely in response.

"You know you can kiss me if you want to," she told him shyly.

"I want to," he replied already cupping her cheek and leaning in.

As their lips met in a soft kiss something was sparked inside of Finn. Something so strong and powerful it was impossible to describe. He was sure Rachel felt it too as she pressed herself closer to him and grabbed the side of his neck.

He pulled away for a second looking at her, dark brown eyes meeting his and a smile on her face. He was sure his own grin was just as wide.

"Thank you for taking me out with you today," Finn said softly taking the opportunity to kiss her lips again.

"It was my pleasure. This evening," Rachel insisted with another soft kiss, "has been spectacular."

Finn nodded his head in agreement, not being able to describe it better himself.

He just fused his mouth with her's again, each kiss growing more forceful and more heated and more passionate.

* * *

**And there's chapter nine everyone! I'm so sorry for the late post but as you know thee circumstances have been tough. Hopefully the next chapter will be up sooner. **

**As always please REVIEW! I love seeing the comments, it means a lot. **


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